incontinence and bed wetting

Incontinence and Pelvic Pain

Urinary Incontinence Education

Urinary incontinence, the unintentional leakage of urine at inappropriate times, is a very common condition that affects approximately 13 million people in the United States. While men also experience urinary incontinence, it occurs more commonly in women. Between 10 to 30 percent of women age 15 to 64 and approximately half of those over the age 65 experience the problem.

Urinary incontinence can pose significant medical, social and economic consequences. Medically, incontinence is associated with problems such as urinary tract infections, skin problems and even kidney failure. It can also lead to loss of self-esteem, isolation and depression.

Unfortunately, many women with incontinence do not seek treatment because of the embarrassment that surrounds this condition. Women may also assume it is a natural part of growing older or that nothing short of major surgery can fix the problem. All are major misconceptions.

These days, there are many new ways of diagnosing and treating incontinence that either don't require surgery or require only minimally invasive techniques. There is even a branch of gynecology, called urogynecology, which focuses on the treatment of pelvic floor disorders such as urinary incontinence, overactive bladder, interstitial cystitis, pelvic pain and uterine prolapse.

Types of Incontinence Education

The first step in treating urinary incontinence is identifying the cause(s). In general, urinary incontinence can be divided into the following types:

* Stress incontinence - The leakage of urine during coughing, sneezing, exercising, lifting or other action that puts pressure on the abdomen and thus forces urine out of the bladder. This type of incontinence occurs almost exclusively in women and results when weakness develops in the pelvic floor muscles. Possible causes include childbirth, pelvic surgery or neurological defects. Sometimes, it can be treated by simply improving the pelvic floor muscle tone.

* Urge incontinence - The release of urine preceded by a strong urge to go to the bathroom. Women may experience difficulty in controlling their urine on the way to the bathroom and feel that they have a weak bladder. They may urinate frequently - perhaps even every half hour. This condition may also be referred to as an "overactive bladder". This is the most common type of urinary incontinence and can often be treated with medication.

* Overflow incontinence - The inability of the bladder to empty completely. Urine accumulates in the bladder until the maximum capacity is reached. It then leaks out or "overflows".

* Mixed incontinence - In some women, incontinence is caused by a number of these factors.

Urinary difficulties in women can also be caused by other problems such as:

* Interstitial cystitis - Chronic painful inflammation of the bladder wall that may be accompanied by frequent and/or painful urination. Women with interstitial cystitis may urinate many times a day and struggle to fit their daily activities within trips to the bathroom.

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incontinence and bed wetting