Understanding Chronic Urinary Incontinence (UI): Causes, Symptoms, and Management

What is it?

Urinary incontinence is a medical term used when you lose control over your bladder and urinate unintentionally.
It is very common, and effects millions around the world

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Additional names

This group contains additional names:
- Post-Void Dribbling
- Male Stress Incontinence
- Continuous Leakage

Signs & symptoms

There are different types of incontinence that cause different symptoms:
-Stress incontinence- the urine leaks when the bladder is under pressure, such as while laughing or coughing.
-Urgency incontinence- also called "overactive bladder" is when the urge to pee appears suddenly and intensely, sometimes causing leaks in the way to the bathroom.
-Mixed- symptoms of both stress and urge incontinence.

Diagnosis

Your doctor will ask you about your symptoms, in order to define the type of incontinence you are experiencing.
-Urine test will be ordered to make sure your symptoms are not caused by an infection.
-Urodynamic test to check your bladder’s function and Uroscopy to see it’s inside, are further tests that might be needed to reach a definite diagnosis and decide on a treatment plan.

Treatment

-Lifestyle management- is usually the first choice for treatment. It includes weight loss, fluid management to control the amount and type of fluid you drink, and voiding schedule meaning emptying your bladder at regular intervals during the day.
-Pelvic floor muscle training- also known as Kegel exercises, helps strengthen your muscle and prevent leakage.
-Medication- may help in certain kinds of incontinence.
-Surgery- if the non-surgical treatment failed to achieve its goals.

☝️ This is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult with your physician before making any medical decision.

Learn more about our editorial process for content accuracy.

Source of Information - We analyze big data of more than 23 million patients de-identified medical records from the following sources:

National Institution of Health ∙ World Health Organization ∙ University of Illinois hospital