Sunday, February 22, 2015

The Conservative Urinary Incontinence Treatment

By Olivia Cross


Due to the kind of embarrassment that urinary incontinence causes, most of the people who suffer from it do not seek assistance. In earlier days, it affected mostly the old. However, things have changed and the young also suffer from the same problems. Women patients make up for more than seventy five percent of all those who seek urinary incontinence treatment.

Different interventions are made by doctors depending on the type and severity of your urinary incontinence. The urologist may suggest performing a surgery, prescribe some drugs or teach you some exercises for bladder training and strengthen muscles at the pelvic. There are several conservative treatments available for the problem. However, if the cause of the incontinence is another ailment, you have to be treated for the ailment prior or along with treatment for incontinence. Common conditions that cause incontinence include fistula, which is a tear in the uterus due to prolonged labor during childbirth and enlargement of prostrate gland in men.

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.

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.

There are muscles at the pelvic area that control the passage of urine. They are found around the urethra and the bladder and keep the passage shut until one is ready to urinate. If they get weak or some condition damages them, they may be strengthened by a therapy. The therapy involves physical contraction of the muscles by a patient. It is performed at least thrice a day with at least eight contractions every session. The progress of patient is monitored by the doctor and program adjusted accordingly.

When the pelvic floor muscle exercise does not help improve the situation, the doctor may recommend a device to measure and stimulate electrical signals in the muscles. The electric stimulator is a small probe that is inserted into the vagina in women and anus in men. Some current is passed to the body through the device and helps contract the muscle as you exercise them. It is a little unpleasant but very beneficial.

Patients with urge incontinence take up bladder training as the primary treatment. The training helps lengthen the period that one would urinate after feeling the urge. It takes six weeks to complete it.

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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