Incontinence

If you leak urine (pee) by accident, you’re not alone – urinary incontinence is a common problem affecting over 33 million people in the United States. Some people leak urine when coughing or sneezing, while others need to urinate so urgently that they sometimes can’t make it to the bathroom in time.

Incontinence can affect your quality of life. While it is common, it isn’t normal and can be caused by an underlying medical condition. It’s important to talk with your doctor if you have bladder control problems – there are multiple treatment options depending on your condition.

Common Types of Incontinence

Urinary incontinence is typically caused by multiple factors. If you notice any type of bladder issue affecting your daily life, talk with your doctor about diagnosis and treatment options. The most common types of incontinence are:

Stress Incontinence

If you have stress incontinence, urine can leak when you cough, sneeze, laugh, or exercise – putting pressure on your bladder. This type of incontinence sometimes causes people to avoid activities or become less active.

Stress incontinence is usually caused by weakening or damage to your pelvic floor muscles or other muscles that control urination.

Stress incontinence can be caused by health factors including:

• Aging (although doctors do not consider incontinence a normal part of aging)
• Childbirth and pregnancy
• Menopause
• Obesity
• Prostate problems

Urge Incontinence

If you have overactive bladder (the need to pee before your bladder is full), it can cause urge incontinence – needing to pee so urgently and suddenly that you can’t make it to the bathroom. If you have urge incontinence, you may urinate more frequently than normal and wake up in the night to go to the bathroom.

Urge incontinence can be caused by:

• Diet and other lifestyle factors like smoking
• Diabetes
• Drinking too much alcohol or caffeine – or not drinking enough fluids
• Medicine side effects
• Medical conditions including urinary tract conditions and cancer
• Neurological disorders (Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
• Prostate problems

Overflow Incontinence

Overflow incontinence happens when your bladder is too full, causing urine to leak. Overflow incontinence is more common in men than women and can be caused by prostate problems or surgery.

Overflow incontinence can cause you to urinate more often and in small amounts or dribble urine. Your bladder may fill up due to:

• Diabetes or medicines that cause you to have more urine
• Bladder blockage that keeps your bladder from emptying
• Weakened bladder muscles
• Nerve damage

Incontinence Diagnosis & Treatment

The specialists at Rutland Regional's Marble Valley Urology clinic provide expert diagnosis and treatment options. We’ll help you figure out what’s behind your bladder control problems – and help you address them so you can get back to the activities you enjoy.

Diagnosis

We’ll start with a physical exam and review of your medical history. We’ll then work to figure out what type of incontinence you have, which may involve:

• Simple tests like coughing while standing (to see if you leak urine)
• Bladder stress test
• Bladder diary
• Pad test
• Post-void residual urine test
• Urine tests or cultures

Treatment

The board-certified urology team at Rutland Regional Medical Center treats all types of incontinence in both women and men. If you have incontinence, we’ll provide comprehensive support and treatment including education, pelvic floor exercises, home-care instructions, and guidance for finding and choosing medical supplies.

If you need surgery, we use the latest minimally invasive techniques whenever possible to ensure less pain and faster recovery.

We provide the most advanced treatments available, including:

• In-bladder Botox^® injections, which can help your bladder muscles relax if you have overactive bladder
• Tension-free vaginal taping (TVT), which can help treat stress incontinence by supporting your urethra (the tube that lets urine leave your body) with mesh tape
• Macroplastique injections, which treat stress incontinence by allowing your urethra to close and prevent bladder leakage

Your expert care team includes your primary care doctor along with our board-certified care team:

• Urologists
• General surgeons
• Nurse practitioners