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Urinary incontinence
Definition:
Incontinence is the inability to control the passage of urine. This can range from an occasional leakage of urine, to a complete inability to hold any urine. The two main types of urinary incontinence are: - Stress incontinence -- occurs during certain activities like coughing, sneezing, laughing, or exercise.
- Urge incontinence -- involves a strong, sudden need to urinate followed by instant bladder contraction and involuntary loss of urine. You don't have enough time between when you recognize the need to urinate and when you actually do urinate.
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Bowel incontinence, a separate topic, is the inability to control the passage of stool. Alternative Names:
Loss of bladder control; Uncontrollable urination; Urination - uncontrollable; Incontinence - urinary
Considerations:
Incontinence is most common among the elderly. Women are more likely than men to have urinary incontinence. Infants and children are not considered incontinent, but merely untrained, up to the time of toilet training. Occasional accidents are not unusual in children up to age 6 years. Young (and sometimes teenage) girls may have slight leakage of urine when laughing. Nighttime urination in children is normal until the age of 5 or 6. NORMAL URINATION The ability to hold urine is dependent on having normal anatomy and a normally functioning urinary tract and nervous system. You must also possess the physical and psychological ability to recognize and appropriately respond to the urge to urinate. The process of urination involves two phases: - The filling and storage phase
- The emptying phase
Normally, during the filling and storage phase, the bladder begins to fill with urine from the kidneys. The bladder stretches to accommodate the increasing amounts of urine.
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