Incontinence is considered to be a very common urological problem worldwide, as urinary incontinence can be caused by a fairly wide range of causes. The disease is an involuntary leakage of urine, which the patient is not able to control at will. Urinary incontinence in women is especially common due to the anatomical features of the genitourinary system and a large number of specific provoking circumstances - for example, difficult childbirth. Experts note that, unfortunately, many patients consider this disease an inconvenient problem and do not see a doctor in a timely manner, although the disease is quite treatable today.
Why is it important to know what causes urinary incontinence in women
When a patient comes in with complaints of inability to control urine leakage, it is very important to understand the causes of incontinence, since the tactics of therapy depend on it. Urinary incontinence in women greatly impairs the quality of life, interferes with social adaptation, and creates problems in the sexual sphere. However, patients prefer to hide this problem from everyone, including the doctor, considering it inconvenient. Therefore, the doctor needs to delicately but persistently collect the necessary information in order to determine the cause of the disease.
Urinary incontinence in women usually becomes a manifestation of some pathological condition. So, it is necessary, first of all, to understand whether incontinence is caused by congenital problems (for example, pathologies of the urethra) or developed diseases (for example, post-traumatic urinary fistula or some kind of bladder lesions).
Among the true causes of urinary incontinence in women, not explained by congenital features, the following are distinguished:
- heavy or multiple births, physical strain when lifting weights, obesity - these causes can affect the anatomical location of the pelvic organs, the sensitivity of nerve endings and lead to urinary incontinence in women;
- hormonal fluctuations in premenopausal and menopausal women - atrophic processes occur in the membranes, ligaments, muscles of the pelvic floor, which provokes the inability to control urine outflow;
- Pelvic inflammatory disease, various surgeries in this area, trauma, neoplasms (including brain tumors), diabetes mellitus and some other diseases can cause urinary incontinence.
Sometimes urinary incontinence occurs due to completely reparable temporary causes - for example, it is due to the development of cystitis, chronic constipation. The problem disappears on its own after the cause is eliminated.
Common types of urinary incontinence in women
Specialists note that urinary incontinence in a woman is very strongly associated with the peculiarities of her lifestyle and behavior. So, the most common causes of problems in women are stress and urgency incontinence.
Stress incontinence is caused by increased intra-abdominal pressure and is caused by the following factors:
- laughing, coughing, intense workouts in the gym with loads, carrying heavy things;
- smoking;
- decrease in the level of collagen in the pelvic ligaments (sometimes due to hormonal fluctuations caused by age, stress, medication, etc.).
- Sometimes, stress urinary incontinence in women occurs with pathologies of the cervix or bladder sphincter caused by trauma, surgery or disease.
- Urgent urinary incontinence in women - when the urge to urinate urgently occurs abruptly and does not allow it to be completely postponed - often develops in the following cases:
- overactive bladder (may be congenital or acquired due to a number of diseases or stresses);
- neurological factor - the inability to control urination occurs, for example, when entering a large audience of people, some external stimuli (sharp sounds, emotional conversations).
Urine urge incontinence can be caused by going out of a warm room into a cold environment, or even drinking alcohol.
Opportunities for the treatment of urinary incontinence in women
Therapeutic options for urinary incontinence in women today are quite wide, and the choice of technique depends on the cause of the development of incontinence, on the degree of neglect of the process.
In the early stages, the problem can often be solved with the help of specially designed exercises to strengthen all the muscles of the pelvic floor, change the diet, correct stress and lifestyle. For drug therapy, antispasmodics are used, therapy is carried out in courses, the dosage is selected individually.
If drug therapy is not effective, injections of collagen or other drugs can be recommended strictly according to indications. A good effect is obtained by a surgical operation using a loop technique.
It is very important to start therapy as early as possible in order to prevent a significant deterioration in the woman's quality of life and to solve the problem of urinary incontinence as effectively as possible.
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