Urinary Incontinence Treatment

Urinary incontinence is a condition that affects the lives of many people. When you have incontinence, you may experience bladder control problems and leak urine. This leak is often uncontrollable and can negatively affect your life. This condition can occur at any age, but is more common in women over the age of 50. Although it is more common in older women, it can also affect younger women. It's not a normal part of aging or just a problem you have to live with.

Your urinary system consists of the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra. They filter, store and remove waste from your body. Your kidneys are your body's filters. Waste products are excreted from your blood by the kidneys and form urine. Urine is then collected by two thin tubes called ureters in the bladder, where the urine will be collected until it's time to leave the body. Your bladder is like a storage tank. When the bladder is full, the brain sends a signal that it's time to urinate. By relaxation of a muscle called the sphincter, urine leaves the bladder and the urethra allows urine to flow freely out of the body.

When this system works smoothly, you usually have time to go to the toilet before urinating and you will not experience any urine leakage. Urinary incontinence can occur when any of these organs and parts we have listed do not work properly. This can happen for many different reasons throughout your life.

Many people think that incontinence is a normal part of aging. Incontinence can happen to anyone. However, it is more common in certain groups and at certain times in your life. Incontinence is much more common in women than men. This is often related to pregnancy, childbirth and menopause. Each of these experiences can cause a woman's pelvic floor muscles to weaken over time.

While it's true that your risk of incontinence increases as you get older, there are treatments available to help you manage the condition. Incontinence should not impair your quality of life or prevent you from being active.

What Causes Incontinence?

There are many different reasons why you may experience incontinence. These reasons may differ depending on whether you are a woman or a man. Some causes are temporary health conditions that usually go away after being treated. In these cases, your incontinence also usually stops once the condition is treated. Incontinence can be caused by long-term (chronic) medical conditions. When you're experiencing leaking issues due to a chronic condition, it's often something you need to manage over a longer period of time.

Causes of temporary or short-term urinary incontinence may include:

Urinary tract infections (UTI): Infection in your urinary tract (urethra, ureters, bladder and kidneys) can cause pain and/or you may feel the need to urinate more often. The frequent urge to urinate usually goes away after treatment.

Pregnancy: As your uterus grows during pregnancy, the pressure it puts on the bladder increases. Most women who experience urinary incontinence during pregnancy find that it goes away in the weeks after giving birth.

Medications: Some medications used for hypertension (diuretics) or antidepressants can have side effects.

Drinks: When you cut down on beverages that can cause you to urinate more often, such as coffee, tea, and alcohol, your need to urinate often decreases.

Constipation: Chronic constipation (hard and dry stools) can cause you to have bladder control problems.

Causes of chronic or prolonged incontinence may include:

Pelvic floor disorders: When you have a problem with your pelvic floor muscles, it can affect the functioning of your organs, including your bladder.

Stroke: It can cause you to have problems with muscle control. This condition may also involve the muscles that control your urinary system.

Diabetes: When you have diabetes, your body produces more urine. This increase in the amount of urine can cause incontinence problems in the form of leakage. In addition, peripheral neuropathy due to diabetes can affect bladder function.

Menopause: Menopause is another period of change in a woman's body where hormone levels change rapidly and the pelvic floor muscles can also weaken.

Multiple sclerosis (MS): If you have MS, you may lose control of your bladder, which can lead to leaky incontinence.

You may feel uncomfortable talking to your doctor about incontinence. However, if urinary incontinence is frequent or is affecting your quality of life, it is important to seek medical attention.

Is Incontinence More Common in Women?

Incontinence is much more common in women than men. Much of this is due to pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause. Each of these situations can lead to bladder control problems. Pregnancy can be a short-term cause of urinary incontinence, and bladder control problems usually resolve after delivery. Some women may experience urinary incontinence after childbirth due to pressure on their pelvic floor muscles. When these muscles are weakened, you are likely to experience incontinence in the form of leakage.

Menopause causes your body to go through many changes. During menopause, your hormones (especially estrogen) change, and this can change your bladder control.

Does Pregnancy Cause Incontinence?

During pregnancy, your body goes through many physical changes. When your uterus stretches to hold the growing baby, your bladder is compressed by the expanding baby and your bladder is holding less urine than before. The urgency to urinate may increase during pregnancy because your bladder cannot hold as much urine as before. It can make your daily activities more difficult towards the end of pregnancy.

Another cause of urinary incontinence during pregnancy is weakening of your pelvic floor muscles. These muscles are the support structures of all the organs in your pelvis. During pregnancy, they can stretch and weaken as your uterus expands.

What are the Symptoms of Urinary Incontinence?

The main symptom of incontinence is urinary incontinence. This can be a persistent drip of urine or an occasional leaking experience, more or less in quantity.

You can leak urine in a variety of situations and reasons:

During exercise.

During coughing.

While laughing.

During sneezing.

Has the urge to urinate but not being able to go to the toilet on time.

Having to get up in the middle of the night to urinate (nocturia).

Is My Risk of Incontinence Higher in Older Ages?

As you age, the muscles that support your pelvic organs may also weaken. If you have a chronic health condition, especially if you have had more than one birth, you may have a higher risk of developing incontinence over the years if you have gone through menopause. It is important to talk to your healthcare provider as soon as possible about the risks of incontinence and how you can manage it without affecting your daily life.

How Is Incontinence Diagnosed?

Often, the diagnostic process for incontinence begins with a conversation with your healthcare provider about your medical history and bladder control issues. You frequently during the examination; "How often do you urinate?", "Do you leak urine between going to the toilet, how often does this happen and how much urine do you leak each time?", "How long have you been incontinence?" will be asked. These questions can help your doctor find your type of incontinence. When asked about your medical history, it is important to list all of your medications, as some medications can cause incontinence. It's important to remember details about your past pregnancies and each birth as well.

Urinary Incontinence Treatment with Laser - İzmir

Laser technology, which is frequently used in the treatment of incontinence, has also been used in gynecology in recent years. It has started to take its place at the beginning of surgical treatments due to its ease of application and satisfactory results. Vaginal laser applications treat incontinence, vaginal enlargement, sagging, uterine prolapse, vaginal dryness and related pain during sexual intercourse. Genital area bleaching, genital tightening and fullness can be provided, and cervical wound treatments can be performed.

In the treatment of urinary incontinence with laser, it provides both the formation of new collagen and the regeneration of existing collagen tissues, thanks to the procedure performed with the 'laser'. It then tightens the vaginal and pelvic tissues that support the bladder. Although it varies according to the person, 80% of the patients stay dry after two sessions of treatment.

What You Should Know About Laser Incontinence Treatment

Urinary Incontinence should be treated with the method that the obstetrician deems appropriate after the patient's gynecological examination. There are situations where surgical treatment is more appropriate or needs to be supported by medical treatment.

Benefits and Advantages of Laser Incontinence Treatment

Urinary incontinence treatment is a treatment method applied in outpatient clinic conditions. However, the duration of the process is between 20-25. Generally, 1-3 sessions are applied at intervals of 3-4 weeks. It has advantages such as no need for pre- and post-operative care required by surgical treatments, no need for anesthesia, no incisions or stitches, no bleeding, and the patient's ability to return to his daily life immediately.

How is Laser Application Made?

Laser urinary incontinence treatment is a type of treatment that is effective in this disease that puts people in a difficult situation in daily life. This treatment is usually applied for about 30 minutes in four sessions. In addition to the advantages it provides, there is no anesthesia, no suture marks or incisions. In this way, treatment becomes much more comfortable and risk-free for people.

Urge Incontinence Treatment

The treatment method for urinary incontinence problems varies according to the type of health problem experienced. There are five different types of treatment for this disease. These; conservative treatments, diet and lifestyle changes, pelvic floor exercises, laser and drug treatments. The most appropriate treatment method is determined by the doctor according to the patient's health status. The most preferred methods are laser urinary incontinence treatments and pelvic floor exercises.

Urinary Incontinence Surgery

In urinary incontinence problems, operations are generally performed by two techniques. Operations performed only on individuals with mild urinary incontinence are performed under local anesthesia. Among the techniques applied are transvaginal tape application (TVT) and transobturator tape (TOT) application. The common point of these surgeries is that they are made by making small incisions in the abdomen or vagina. The difference between them is the way they travel to the urinary tract. However, it is the most preferred TOT technique.

These holes opened in the vagina in these surgeries are only in the size for a needle to pass through. A special tape in the form of a strip is passed around the bladder. The urethra and bladder are then removed. The surgeon adjusts the tension of this band to provide the right amount of support during surgery. After the surgery, the tape is not removed and becomes a part of the body. However, it does not appear or hang from the outside of the body.