Urinary Incontinence
Urinary incontinence is the uncontrollable and uninhibitable leakage
of urine through the urethra. Urinary incontinence could be secondary
to many causes. Primarily it is related to, what is called overactive
bladder, where the patient has frequency and urgency running to
the toilet. It also could be related to stress urinary incontinence,
where when the patient coughs or sneezes or exercise, he or she
leaks urine. Overflow urinary incontinence is when the bladder is
unable to empty and it, in fact, overflows. This is usually secondary
to a bladder that will not contract or to urethral obstruction,
such as stricture or prostate obstruction. Again the diagnosis of
urinary incontinence requires a good thorough history and physical
examination, especially in women understanding history of childbirth
and pelvic surgeries. We then obtain a urinalysis along with a voiding
diary, which is a day to day accounting of how much urethral leakages
is associated with normal voiding and oral intake of fluids. Then
based upon this data, we decide whether the patient could be controlled
by noninvasive means, which may include fluid management and pelvic
exercises, the so called Kegel exercises. The patient may need more
aggressive evaluation including an urodynamic measurement, which
in fact is a way to measure how the bladder and urethra works to
identify the source of the incontinence and guide therapy. Therapy
could include a range of pharmaceuticals and pelvic exercises, up
to surgery.
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through the LUHS Web site should not be used for diagnosing
or treating a health problem or a disease, nor is it a substitute
for professional care. Should you have any health-care related
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