Urinary incontinence is the involuntary loss of urine.

Pregnancy, childbirth and menopause may contribute to the development of incontinence in women but are not requirements. Time, aging, and weak pelvic floor musculature also can contribute to causing urinary incontinence in women. The two main types of incontinence are stress incontinence and urge incontinence (also called overactive bladder). A woman may have stress incontinence, urge incontinence, or a combination of the two.

There is no specific amount of urinary leakage that is considered a medical problem. When it becomes bothersome to the individual then it is time for evaluation and treatment. Many of the treatments for urinary incontinence are nonsurgical treatments and include dietary modifications, Kegal and pelvic floor exercises, medication, physical therapy specifically for the pelvic floor, biofeedback, neuromodulation, Botox injection, or a combination of these therapies. A good fraction of patients can be improved without surgery.

For patients with stress incontinence, who do not respond to non-surgical treatments, the sub urethral sling is the standard of care for treatment of this bothersome problem. This noninvasive procedure takes only approximately 15 to 20 minutes to perform is typically performed in an outpatient center and the patient goes home the same day. Recovery is rapid and there is usually very little downtime.  There may be a time where lifting and straining needs to be avoided but for the most part driving and routine tasks can be resumed relatively quickly after a sub-urethral sling.

For patients with an overactive bladder that continues to be a problem after non-surgical management does Botox injections (office procedure), and neuromodulator implants are options. the implantable neiromodlator (Medtronics Implant) implant is like a pacemaker for the bladder.  A small, disc-like implant is placed under the skin with a very small wire that regulates the nerve to the bladder. Both of these procedures are effective and non-invasive.

Urinary Incontinence can have a significant impact on the patient psychological and physical life there’s no reason to accept Incontinence is a normal part of aging it’s extremely treatable and almost all patients can have market improvement with most achieving cure.

{Exerpt from Dr. Lind’s Book Chapter, Urinary Incontinence in Women, in Budoff, PW: No More Hot Flashes and even more Good News. Warner Books, INC, New York, NY, 1998. First e-book edition 2009. Updates added to reflect current treatments.}

If you or a loved one is experiencing urinary incontinence, you are encouraged to pick up the phone and call Dr Lind, The Pelvic Floor Doctor at (516)622-5114 to schedule a consultation.