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What Is Overactive Bladder Syndrome

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Overactive Bladder In Men At A Glance

What is Overactive Bladder Syndrome?
  • Overactive bladder is the result of malfunctioning bladder muscles and nerves that send sensations to the brain, causing involuntary and unnecessary contraction of the bladder muscles.
  • The primary symptom of OAB is a sudden, uncontrollable urge to urinate, often resulting in leakage of urine, which is incontinence.
  • OAB, also called urge incontinence, affects up to 30 percent of males, preventing them from controlling when and how much they urinate.
  • Nearly two-thirds of cases of OAB in men are caused by an enlarged prostate.

In This Training Scheduling Toilet Trips

In this training, you will keep a schedule as to when and how often you can go to the bathroom. Also, you will be asked to make delays, lengthen the time between bathroom breaks, etc. You will train you and your bladder to control the urge and keep the urine in by doing this. you will write down when you make the bathroom trips. This will help you to identify what makes your symptoms worse.

Diagnosis Of Overactive Bladder Syndrome

When OAB symptoms are present, your doctor might need to rule out other possible explanations for the symptoms, such as urinary infection or diabetes.

First, the doctor or nurse might take your medical history and do a physical examination. If needed, other tests will be performed.

This section offers general information about the diagnosis of OAB and situations can vary from country to country.

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Microbiome/chronic Urinary Tract Infection

Following the recent identification of a bladder-specific microbiome, and the role of the gut microbiome in chronic functional gastrointestinal diseases , a link between the balance of bacteria in the bladder and the symptoms of OAB and IC/PBS has been postulated and explored . Moreover, the traditional colony forming unit thresholds for confirming urinary tract infection in clinical practice have been questioned, and a role for chronic UTI in the pathogenesis of OAB has been investigated .

Why All Of A Sudden Can I Not Hold My Pee

Overactive Bladder: Types, Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis And ...

Both stress incontinence and urgent urination are common in the United States. The result of both stress and egomin incontinence is an unexpected, urine leakage which results from sneezing, coughing, or physical activities. For an urge to urinate, egomin incontinence occurs when you feel you need to do so in order to do your job.

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Surgery For Overactive Bladder

Treating OAB with surgery is not a common treatment course and is reserved for women whose other treatments plans have failed. Surgery may increase the physical size of the bladder by using portions of bowel to replace and expand a section of the bladder. Completely removing the bladder is always a last resort surgery.

What Is The Bladder

The bladder is the organ which stores urine produced by the kidneys. It is a muscle in the shape of a bag which can hold around 400 millilitres of urine .

Most people become aware their bladder is filling when it is half full. In order to empty the bladder, you have to be able to relax. This usually means being in a socially convenient environment, such as a toilet or a private space. The brain will then send a signal to the bladder to start squeezing out the urine.

How often you urinate depends on many factors, but one in particular is how much you drink. Most people urinate less than 8 times during the day, and either not at all or once during the night.

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Understanding Urine And The Bladder

The kidneys make urine all the time. A trickle of urine is constantly passing to the bladder down the ureters, the tubes from the kidneys to the bladder. You make different amounts of urine depending on how much you drink, eat and sweat.

The bladder is made of muscle and stores the urine. It expands like a balloon as it fills with urine. The outlet for urine, the urethra, is normally kept closed. This is helped by the muscles beneath the bladder that sweep around the urethra, the pelvic floor muscles. When a certain amount of urine is in the bladder, you become aware that the bladder is getting full. When you go to the toilet to pass urine, the bladder muscle squeezes and the urethra and pelvic floor muscles relax.

Complex nerve messages are sent between the brain, the bladder, and the pelvic floor muscles. These tell you how full your bladder is, and tell the right muscles to contract or relax at the right time.

Living With Overactive Bladder Syndrome

OverActive Bladder Syndrome

Although overactive bladder symptoms are not life-threatening, they usually have a negative impact on your quality of life. Different people cope differently with their symptoms and the possible side effects of treatment. Your personal preferences and values and the impact of OAB symptoms on your life should not be underestimated.

Quality of life involves both physical and psychological health. It is important not only to feel healthy but also to feel free from the psychological pressure of living with OAB symptoms.

Symptoms such as urgency or the need to urinate frequently are likely to have a negative effect on your quality of life. Someone with OAB symptoms often needs to locate toilets before leaving the house and may avoid certain activities altogether. Also, losing sleep because of waking up at night to urinate may lower your energy levels, which makes it more difficult to maintain your daily activities. Episodes of urgency which result in leakage of urine are embarrassing and may lower your self-esteem.

These problems can also impact your loved ones. For example, your partner might be awoken by night time toilet visits. Because of your OAB symptoms you may avoid social activities. This can also affect your partnerâs social life and lead to a feeling of isolation which prevents you and your loved ones from fully enjoying life.

Seeking help

This information was produced by the European Association of Urology .

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Diuretics That Causes Overactive Bladder Syndrome And Incontinence

Water pills represent another group of medications called diuretics. These drugs are functioning on the kidney level decreasing the blood pressure by moving extra water and microelements out of the organism.

While digesting medicines from the group of diuretics, humans body is manufacturing additional urine, says David Ginsberg, MD, professor of the urology department at the Keck School of Medicine in Los Angeles.

The extra production of urine causes more frequent visits to a restroom and a deteriorating of overactive bladder syndrome as well as incontinence symptoms, he says.

4. Sleeping Pills that cause worsening of overactive bladder syndrome and Incontinence

Just a few percent of individuals with overactive bladder syndrome and incontinence suffer from bed-wetting, as it was mentioned by Dr. Jennifer Anger, who approximates that not more than 5% of individuals with the overactive bladder syndrome are occasionally wetting the bed.

Sleeping medicines may deteriorate the patients condition because individuals that are taking these pills are sleeping too deep and cant wake up even if their bladder is full, she says.

As a substitute, patients should decrease the total amount of daily caffeine so that they sleep better without drugs that interfere with the central nervous system, Dr. Anger suggests.

Acupuncture treatment for overactive bladder

Herbal Remedies for Overactive Bladder

Homeopathy for OverActive Bladder Syndrome

How Do I Get Rid Of Overactive Bladder Fast

  • Exercise the Pelvic Floor to strengthen the sphincter muscles and the Pelvic Floor muscles.
  • It is a system which utilizes behavior change
  • Im healthy weight
  • Schedule your toilet trips in advance.
  • A procedure every few months that requires only minimal intervention.
  • Made of absorbent pads
  • Taking care of your bladder will help you achieve greater success.
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    How Is Overactive Bladder Syndrome Diagnosed

    Your healthcare provider will examine you and ask about your symptoms and health history. You may also have 1 or more of these tests:

    • Urine test. Urine samples are taken and checked for problems.

    • Urinary diary. You record how much fluid you take in and urinate out for 3 days.

    • Bladder ultrasound. This studies the bladder as it empties. Ultrasound uses sound waves to make detailed images of the inside of the body.

    • Cystoscopy. This test lets the provider look for problems in the urinary tract. The test uses a thin, flexible scope with a light and camera on the end. The scope is put into the tube that takes urine out of the body .

    • Urodynamic studies. This is a group of tests. They measure and record many aspects of urinary bladder function. This includes pressures, volume, and urine flow.

    Behavioral And Lifestyle Changes

    Urge Urinary Incontinence &  Overactive Bladder Syndrome

    Performing pelvic floor exercises, known as Kegels, strengthens the pelvic floor muscles and the sphincter, a urinary muscle. Scheduling toilet trips for every couple of hours, as well as managing and reducing fluid intake, will help women normalize their urine schedule. Bladder training involves delaying urination after the initial sensation hits and building up the intervals between urinating over time.

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    What Causes Overactive Bladder

    An overactive bladder can be caused by several things, or even a combination of causes. Some possible causes can include:

    • Weak pelvic muscles: Pregnancy and childbirth can cause your pelvic muscles to stretch and weaken. This can cause the bladder to sag out of its normal position. All of these factors can cause leakage.
    • Nerve damage: Sometimes signals are sent to the brain and bladder to empty at the wrong time. Trauma and diseases can cause this to happen. These can include:
    • Pelvic or back surgery.
    • Stroke.
  • Medications, alcohol and caffeine: All of these products can dull the nerves, which affects the signal to the brain. This could result in bladder overflow. Diuretics and caffeine can cause your bladder to fill rapidly and possibly leak.
  • Infection: An infection, like a urinary tract infection , can irritate the bladder nerves and cause the bladder to squeeze without warning.
  • Excess weight: Being overweight places extra pressure on your bladder. This can lead to urge incontinence.
  • Estrogen deficiency after menopause: This hormonal change could contribute to a loss of urine due to urgency. Ask your doctor if vaginal-only estrogen therapy is right for you. This is different from systemic hormone therapy, which is absorbed throughout the body.
  • Often, there may be no specific explanation for why this is occurring.

    Drink Normal Quantities Of Fluids

    It may seem sensible to cut back on the amount that you drink so the bladder does not fill so quickly. However, this can make symptoms worse as the urine becomes more concentrated, which may irritate the bladder muscle. Aim to drink normal quantities of fluids each day. This is usually about two litres of fluid per day – about 6-8 cups of fluid, and more in hot climates and hot weather.

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    Research And Statistics: How Many People Have Overactive Bladder

    Estimates as high as 30 percent of men and 40 percent of women will develop symptoms of overactive bladder at some point in their life, according to the American Urological Association.

    In addition, almost one-half of all women will leak urine at some point, and as many as one in three older men leaks urine, according to the according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

    Its important to note that these numbers may underestimate the extent of overactive bladder, since many people are reluctant to report their symptoms due to embarrassment or lack of knowledge that treatments are available.

    Complications Of Overactive Bladder

    #389 INTRADETRUSOR BOTOX FOR OVERACTIVE BLADDER SYNDROME IN CHILDREN

    Overactive bladder can have a significant negative impact on your quality of life. It can interfere with work, sleep, exercise, your social life, and your sex life.

    Many people with OAB are nervous about having access to a restroom outside their home and may shy away from certain social activities or even everyday errands. This, in turn, may result in feeling isolated and lonely.

    If you need to get up several times during the night to urinate, it may be difficult to get restful sleep. This can leave you tired during the day and contribute to mood disorders, like depression and anxiety.

    And if youre worried that sexual activity will cause discomfort, that youll be interrupted by the need to urinate, or that youll leak urine, you may be reluctant to engage in sex. This can take a toll on relationships, causing further emotional difficulty.

    In addition, urine leakage can lead to skin problems or infections.

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    Effects Of Caffeine And Alcohol

    Tea, coffee, cola, and some painkiller tablets contain caffeine. Caffeine has a diuretic effect and will make urine form more often. Caffeine may also directly stimulate the bladder to make urgency symptoms worse. It may be worth trying without caffeine for a week or so to see if symptoms improve. If symptoms do improve, you may not want to give up caffeine completely. However, you may wish to limit the times that you have a caffeine-containing drink. Also, you will know to be near to a toilet whenever you have caffeine.

    In some people, alcohol may make symptoms worse. The same advice applies as with caffeine drinks.

    Cause Overactive Bladder Syndrome

    • The precise cause of overactive bladder syndrome is not well understood and is still under investigation. Several factors may be involved and the main one may vary from individual to individual. Some people experience sudden and spontaneous contractions of the bladder muscle
    • Some people are more sensitive to the feeling of their bladder filling
    • Some people have a smaller bladder which is filled to capacity more quickly

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    Causes Of Overactive Bladder

    To understand the cause of Overactive Bladder, a basic understanding of how the urinary system operates is needed.

    The kidneys produce the urine and send it to the bladder. The bladder expands to holds the urine while the sphincter muscle acts as a spiget and controls the flow of urine. Basically on or off. As soon as your bladder gets approximately half fullmost people can handle about 2 cups of urineyour brain is signaled that you need to empty it. The bladder muscles contract while the sphincter relaxes. When there is a coordination problem along this system, incontinence occurs.

    With Overactive Bladder, a person may be suddenly aware of the urgency sensation but is unable to get to the toilet before losing control of his or her urine. Urine loss can be in large amounts that soak underwear and even outer clothing.

    Common triggers like hearing running water or simply the anticipation of urinating can cause a bladder spasm. In some cases, people who have physical limitations may not be able to reach the toilet in time, causing an accident.

    How Bad Is It

    Overactive bladder symptoms

    Your doctor may ask you questions to help figure out how much OAB is affecting your life. For example, you could rate on a scale of 1 to 5 how much you’ve been bothered by things like accidental leaks, lots of daytime bathroom breaks, and waking up at night to go. Your doctor might also ask you to keep a voiding diary of your bathroom trips.

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    Frequently Asked Questions: Overactive Bladder

    Q: What are the symptoms of overactive bladder syndrome ?

    A: An overactive bladder causes a frequent urge to urinate, sometimes resulting in involuntary urine leakage called urge incontinence. People with an OAB may say that their bladder fills up quickly, but in fact, their bladder muscle malfunctions and tells the brain it is much fuller than it actually is. Due to this hyperactive signaling, you may also wake up multiple times during the night to urinate . People with overactive bladders urinate more often than othersusually eight or more times per day. All these extra bathroom visits can consume a lot of time and disrupt normal activities.

    Q: What causes an overactive bladder?

    A: Overactive bladder is not a disease in itself, but a syndrome that can be triggered or exacerbated by many different possible factors. Doctors do not fully understand the cause of an overactive bladder, which is why they describe it as a syndrome. However, factors such as cognitive decline, neurological disorders, diabetes, bladder disorders, pelvic floor muscle tone, weight, stress and consumption of alcoholic or caffeinated beverages can all contribute to the development of an overactive bladder.

    Q: What are the consequences of an overactive bladder?

    Q: How can I avoid getting it?

    A: Fortunately, you can take many actions to prevent getting overactive bladder including:

    Q: What should I do if I develop an overactive bladder?

    Disclaimer:

    How Common Is Overactive Bladder Syndrome

    Overactive bladder syndrome is very common and may affect more than 33 million adult Americans

    Its most often seen in people between the ages of 30-60 years old. Its also more common in women than men.

    As the body ages, it becomes more likely for an overactive bladder to develop. Women who have both an overactive bladder and diabetes have a greater chance of having a severe case of OAB compared to women without diabetes.

    What are the complications associated with overactive bladder syndrome?

    There are many health problems associated with overactive bladder syndrome. These include urinary tract infections, injuries to the urethra, kidney damage, and bladder stones.

    How is overactive bladder syndrome diagnosed?

    The doctor will do an exam to diagnose overactive bladder syndrome. The doctor will ask about symptoms, medical history, activities that may cause the symptoms, and family history.

    During the exam, the doctor will check the abdomen, genitals, and pelvic area for anything unusual. The doctor may also check to see if the bladder is full of urine.

    The doctor will remove a sample of urine to look for infection or other problems that could be causing the symptoms.

    The doctor may refer you to a urologist, who specializes in the urinary tract. The urologist may do further testing, including:

    Upper tract imaging: An X-ray or other imaging test of your kidneys and ureters can help doctors find out if there are any problems with these organs.

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