Health Utility Value of Overactive Bladder in Japanese Older Adults

Abstract

AbstractObjectivesTo determine the health utility values (HUVs) of overactive bladder (OAB) among adults aged ≥65 years and to assess the HUV decrements (disutilities) of OAB according to its severity.MethodsThis cross-sectional Internet-based study was conducted between 2 and 9 November 2023, with quota sampling with equal probability for each gender and age group (age 65–74 years and ≥75 years). OAB was defined as an urgency score of ≥2 points and a total score of ≥3 points based on the Overactive Bladder Symptom Score. OAB severity was categorized as mild (total score, ≤5 points) or moderate-to-severe (total score, 6–15 points). HUVs were measured using the EuroQol 5-Dimension 5-Level value set for the Japanese population. Multivariable linear regression models were fitted to estimate the covariate-adjusted disutilities of OAB, with eight covariates selected based on previous studies.ResultsAmong the 998 participants (51.9% male; mean age, 73.2 years), 158 (15.9%) had OAB, of whom 87 (8.8%) had moderate-to-severe OAB. The mean HUVs for participants with mild and moderate-to-severe OAB were 0.874 and 0.840, respectively, which were lower compared with the HUV for those without OAB (0.913). After adjusting for relevant covariates, disutilities (95% confidence intervals [CIs]) for mild and moderate-to-severe OAB were –0.0334 (–0.0602 to –0.0066) and –0.0591 (–0.0844 to –0.0339), respectively.ConclusionsThis study examined HUVs in older Japanese adults with and without OAB. The results demonstrate that increased OAB severity is associated with greater disutility.