Less Intrusive Urinary Incontinence Treatment

By Olivia Cross


Urinary incontinence is an embarrassing problem that few people are at liberty to talk of. Earlier, urinary incontinence was thought to affect the old but nowadays, it affecting people across both genders and age groups. However, over 75% of all those seeking urinary incontinence treatment are the womenfolk.

Depending on the severity and type of incontinence, doctors could prescribe drugs, perform surgeries, and suggest some exercises to strengthen pelvic floor muscles or train the bladder. Here are some of non- surgical urinary incontinence treatments available. It is good to note if incontinence is caused by another ailment, you would receive treatment for the condition before or along with the incontinence treatment. Such conditions include fistula (a tear in the uterus caused by prolonged childbirth) and prostrate enlargement in men.

Certain lifestyle behaviors are thought to aggravate the problem. Changes in these habits may help without any intervention by medical procedures. The patient may be advised to take less fluid each day so as to reduce the amount of urine held at the bladder.

Caffeine also causes you to produce large quantities of urine from your body. Large quantities are found in coffee, cola drinks and sports drinks. The doctor may recommend taking little of such drinks. You may also be advised to check on your weight. Obesity can cause problems with the bladder and other parts of the body. Losing weight could alleviate some of the problems.

The body uses pelvic floor muscles to control the flow of urine. These muscles are found around the bladder and the urethra and keep the bladder closed until you visit the washroom. If these muscles are damaged or weak, the doctor may start a program to strengthen them. The program involves contracting the muscle for at least eight times at three sessions a day. The specialist keeps track of your improvement and advises accordingly.

For those whose pelvic floor muscles do not respond to the therapy above, electrical stimulation could be of assistance. Electrical stimulation is done by a small device inserted in a vagina or the anus if the patient is a man. It measures the electrical charges in the floor muscles and releases small electrical pulses for further stimulation. It is a bit uncomfortable but great if done together with the therapy.

If you are diagnosed with urge incontinence, bladder training may be the very first treatment that you would encounter. This may be offered together with pelvic training above. This training involves techniques to help increase the length of time between when you felt the urge to urinate and the actual time you pass the urine. The training takes about a month and half.

For women with weak pelvic floor muscles and are unable to exercise them, vaginal cones could be of assistance. These are small weights that are inserted into vagina to help in pelvic floor muscle training. You are meant to hold the weights in place with your pelvic muscles. The weights come in different weights but, you start with the lightest to the heaviest. This kind of treatment is very helpful for women that suffer from stress incontinence.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment