Activity impairment, health-related quality of life, productivity, and self-reported resource use and associated costs of uncomplicated urinary tract infection among women in the United States

Abstract

Background Uncomplicated urinary tract infections (uUTIs) are among the most common infections in the US. Only a few studies, however, describe the impact of uUTIs from the patient perspective. Methods A cross-sectional online survey of US women aged ≥18 years was performed assessing uUTI burden regarding activity impairment, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), workplace productivity, healthcare resource use (HRU), and costs. Participants who self-reported a uUTI in the prior 60 days treated with ≥1 oral antibiotic were included. Activity impairment was assessed with the Activity Impairment Assessment scale. HRQoL was assessed using a modified Short Form 36 (SF-36). Direct costs were sum of out-of-pocket expenditures and monetized HRU; indirect costs were calculated using Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI). Participants were stratified by uUTI recurrence, number of prescribed antibiotics for recent uUTI and therapy appropriateness (1 first-line/1 second-line/multiple antibiotics). Multivariable regression analysis assessed the relationship between stratifications and outcomes while controlling for demographic/clinical characteristics. Propensity score matching was used to compare participants to a matched population from the 2020 National Health and Wellness Survey (NHWS), to control for any impact of COVID-19 on responses. Results Among 375 participants, impaired activities included sexual intercourse (66.9%), sleep (60.8%) and exercise (52.3%). HRQoL was worse (pConclusions uUTIs were associated with increased activity impairment, worse productivity, and reduced HRQoL. Higher costs were found vs. a matched population.