There is Help for Urinary Incontinence
We want to emphasize a few points right up front when it comes to urinary incontinence in women. First, you’re not alone. In fact, the issue affects up to half of women. Second, it’s not normal to have urinary incontinence. Last, and perhaps most important, there are effective treatment options.
The highly skilled professionals at The Center for Women’s Health treat a wide range of women’s health issues, including urinary incontinence.
In the following, Cheri Coyle, MD, reviews why urinary incontinence affects so many women and what we can do about the more-than-inconvenient problem.
Urinary incontinence is common among women
Not only does urinary incontinence affect up to half of women, the fairer sex is twice as likely as men to develop the issue. The reason why women are more prone to developing urinary incontinence largely comes down to reproductive function. Pregnancy, childbirth, menopause, and hormones are all directly related to urinary incontinence.
There are several types of urinary incontinence, but the two main types are:
Stress incontinence
With this type, you leak urine when there’s extra pressure on your bladder, such as when you cough or sneeze.
Urge incontinence or overactive bladder
With this type, you have frequent, and strong, urges to urinate and, sometimes, there isn’t a restroom close enough.
Some women can have mixed incontinence, which is a combination of the two.
Temporary or a new normal?
Many women experience temporary issues with urinary incontinence that clear up once the circumstances change or improve.
Pregnancy is a great example of this. As the baby grows, the pressure on your bladder increases, which can lead to leaking urine with any additional increase in pressure, even when you laugh. And, once you give birth, this issue should go away.
Furthermore, childbirth can lead to another common issue — nerve damage or a weakening in the support of your bladder due to vaginal childbirth. Here, too, post-pregnancy incontinence issues should clear up after a few months.
On the other hand, postmenopausal incontinence can get worse if it’s not treated. As a woman gets closer to menopause, estrogen levels drop. Unfortunately, with a decrease in estrogen, the pelvic floor muscles can become weak, which is a condition called pelvic organ prolapse (POP).
Because of POP, the bladder can lose support, which can cause stress incontinence. The relationship between pelvic organ prolapse and incontinence is strong, as 80% of women with POP have stress incontinence.
Solutions for incontinence
As you can see by now, there can be different causes for urinary incontinence. And because of this, there are also different solutions. When you come see us, our first goal will be to figure out what’s causing your incontinence. Then, we’ll recommend a plan that can best help you. For example, your plan might include:
- Medications
- Pelvic floor exercises
- Pessary support for your bladder
- Bladder training
If you have moderate to severe prolapse, we might recommend a minimally invasive surgery to reposition your pelvic organs to relieve the stress on your bladder.
To determine which approach is best for your urinary incontinence, we urge you to book an appointment online or over the phone with one of our offices in Hampton or Newport News, Virginia.