Read all about Urge incontinence
On this page you can read everything about urge incontinence. If you want to find out what your symptoms mean, or what a doctor would think of. Do the symptomcheck
What is urge incontinence?
With urge incontinence there is loss of urine when you have a strong urge to urinate. When you have the feeling you have to urinate, it can sometimes happen you don’t reach the toilet in time and loose some urine. Urge incontinence is most frequent among women and the elderly, but can also appear in men and children.
What are symptoms of urge incontinence?
- Frequent urination, throughout the day
- Not being able to reach the toilet in time, when you feel the urge to go
- Suddenly having to urinate
- Accidentally lossing urine without any physical pressure or urge
Is urge incontinence serious and should I see a doctor?
Urge incontinence is mainly very inconvenient, but often isn’t serious. Loosing urine is a relatively frequent symptom among women. More than half of the women between 45 and 70 years old have had unwanted loss of urine.
Contact a doctor:
- When you regularly have trouble holding your urine
- If the complaints cause a lot fo inconvenience
- For assessment of the complaints and investigation about the underlying cause
What can I do about urge incontinence myself?
- It is paramount for the treatment of urge incontinence to know the underlying cause, with the doctor you can try to find the underlying cause
- For urge incontinence it can be helpful to train the muscles around the bladder with the help of a doctor or a physical therapist, this helps gain more control over your urination
- Keep drinking half a gallon (1,5 liters) of water, this has little effect on urge incontinence
- Avoid sodas, coffee and other cafinated drinks
- When you’re overweight, it can help to loose weight
- There are special products for involuntary loss of urine (special sanitary napkins, incontinence diapers, absorbent underwear, bedmats), these absorb the urine and the odors
- Other types of tools or products are not recommended
How does urge incontinence affect my body?
Urge incontinence is caused by involuntary contractions of the muscles around the bladder. This can have a range of different causes and if these complaints occur regularly, it’s good to go to the doctor to assess the complaints and try to find the cause and prescribe treatment. In most cases htere is no clear cause for the urge incontinence, in which case it’s usually a regular urge incontinence.