Saturday, February 21, 2015

Non Surgical 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.

The treatment offered to the patient is dependent on the severity of the problem and the type of urinary incontinence. The treatment options that are available include taking prescriptions, bladder training, pelvic muscle exercises, and surgery among others. Doctors always start with less intrusive methods if the condition is not severe. If the urologist discovers another condition as the cause for incontinence, the condition is first deal with before or along with incontinence treatment. Fistula, a condition caused by the tearing of the womb in women who experience prolonged and difficult labor and enlarged prostrate glands in menfolk are common causes of incontinence.

Changing few aspects of your lifestyle is the first form of treatment that does not involve medical intervention. Your urologist may suggest that you modify some habits to relieve the symptoms. Such changes could be lowering the intake of water and other fluids in the day so as to bring down the amount of urine that you generate.

Intake of lots of fluids containing caffeine also leads to production of large amounts of urine in the body. Caffeine is a major ingredient in many energy drinks, cola and coffee. One may be advised to limit the intake of such drinks. Research has also shown the obesity affects the proper functioning of pelvic floor muscles. If the patient is overweight, he may be advised on ways of cutting on weight to improve his health.

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.

If the exercise above does not improve your situation, electrical stimulation may be beneficial. The procedure is done by inserting a small probe in the vagina for women and anus for men. The device measures and lets out small pulses of currents in the muscles to help them contract. The procedure works well with other muscle exercises. Many find it a bit unpleasant but it has good results.

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.

Vaginal cones may be used if you are woman with weak muscles at the pelvic floor. The urologist may insert small weights into your vagina which you are supposed to hold with the same muscles. Weights continue getting heavier as you improve. This treatment is good if you are suffering from stress incontinence.




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