Here are a few methods that are either advocated practicing incontinence nurses that you can get going with immediately if you suspect that you have either Stress or Urge incontinence.

Unfortunately there is no quick-fix solution with either condition – the exception being certain surgical procedures – however with some focus and effort there are proved ways to curb male and female incontinence.

The first and perhaps most demanding way of numbering the number of incident of incontinence, is to lose weight.

Regularly emptying your bladder is a very important thing to do. It does not necessarily reduce or cure incontinence; it has preventative benefits that are necessary to stop the condition worsening. Not going regularly when you have incontinence can lead to problems such as an overstretched bladder or a bladder infection. The most important time to make sure you always go – even if you don’t feel little to no urge – is before and after means and before going to bed.

And even simpler method for dealing with incontinence is to breathe deeply, especially in instance of sudden urges, in which case try your best not to panic with calm inhalations. It helps to think confident thoughts that encourage you to feel in control; telling yourself you are not going to have an accident while you breathe.

By the same token, reducing stress and tension in your life is going to help this process of psychologically managing incontinence, the reason being that emotions and your body’s central nervous system are inextricably linked. Being depressed, anxious or angry all the while can negatively affect you bodily sensations. At the very least, it’s worth taking at least an hour out of every day to walk in the park, have a bath, watch a movie you know you like etc. Any activity that helps you to unwind – which, actually, is good to do regardless.

Whenever Sue Jacobs, a 56-year-old hairdresser from Chiswick, met with friends for coffee or a meal, it would always be punctuated by her constant need to rush to the toilet. This she describes as ‘something I simply put up with for many years’, explaining that:

“after I had a drink, I’d need to go three or four times within an hour. I’m not the sort of person who gets embarrassed easily and I wasn’t going to stop going out and doing the things I enjoyed. But it does have an impact on your life.”

For a long time, Sue didn’t recognise that she was dealing with an incontinence problem, instead believing that she simply needed to go far more often than other people. Dr Shirin Irani, consultant gynecologist at Heartlands Hospital in Birmingham believes this is a common attitude among women living with incontinence – an attitude largely born out of an unwillingness to acknowledge and accept they may have incontinence issues, explaining that:

“There is an embarrassment which can stop women seeking help and also a sense it’s part of a woman’s lot.”

In her late 40s, the problem became more pressing and was only once she’d turned 50 that she finally saw her GP, who prescribed drugs to block the signals which tell bladder muscles to contract. She recalls:

“These didn’t help and I wasn’t offered any other treatment. You feel it’s something you have to live with.”

Usually bladder retraining exercises, combined with medication – that block the nerve impulses telling the bladder to contract – is enough to alleviate cases of incontinence for the majority of female sufferers. But some, like Sue, need further intervention. When she returned to her GP, she was referred to consultant urologist Jeremy Ockrim at University College Hospital, who is a practitioner of a new treatment called Sacral Neuromodulation and Botox injections for incontinence.

The Botox treatment involves the chemical being injected into the sides of the bladder to relax muscles, thus stopping contractions. ‘It has been helpful for many patients, but it isn’t perfect,’ says Mr Ockrim, who explains that:

“Patients need repeat injections every six to nine months and symptoms may return gradually. There is also a 20 per cent risk of paralysing the bladder muscles, which means the patient will need a catheter to pass urine.”

With the Sacral Neuromodulation treatment, a thin wire with a small needle on is implanted in the sacral nerves. An electrical current is then delivered through it, which enables the brain to inhibit unwanted signals from the bladder. This technique effectively suppresses the sudden contractions and the need to rush to the toilet. Patients trial a modulator for three weeks and can choose to have a permanent implant if it works – which is exactly what Sue decided, having noticed dramatic changes soon after the procedure:

“The effect was immediate… two hours after it was switched on, I hadn’t gone to the toilet once.”

She returned to hospital to have a permanent modulator – the size of a £2 coin – implanted under the tissue and skin of her lower back. While Sacral Neuromodulation has been approved by NICE since 2004, only 100 or so women have benefitted from the treatment in the UK – a major factor most likely being the cost.

The stimulator itself costs £8,500 and overall treatment is £12,000. Mr Ockrim, who has treated nearly 60 patients with sacral neuromodulation believes:

“It’s a large initial expense, but comparable with a lifetime of Botox injections…We should consider the social and personal cost for women with incontinence. They go out less, take time off work or even stop working.”

Incontinence is more common in elderly people and is a condition that causes a lot of embarrassment and inconvenience. Nowadays there are numerous treatments and drugs to help individuals regain control of their bladder and live a normal life.

Besides drugs and treatments, individuals with urinary incontinence can take a few important steps of their own to help reduce bladder urges.

Reducing or stopping caffeine intake completely can be very affective, caffeine irritates and stimulates the bladder causing urgent, frequent urination and an increase in urine production.

It is often believed cutting back on the intake of liquids can reduce the urge to urinate, however this not true. In fact the lack of liquids can cause dehydration, causing urine to become more concentrated resulting in increased bladder urgency which can lead to bladder infection.

Excess amounts of alcohol and spicy food can also have negative effects to individuals suffering from urinary incontinence, try to avoid those as much as possible and you should notice a reduction on incontinence episodes.

Develop a regular schedule of urinating to encourage the bladder to hold more urine and work on gradually increasing the time between urination, but don’t hold it for too long as this can increase the risk of urinary tract infection.

The last tip is well known one of the readers of our blog but is always worth remembering as it is a highly effective incontinence treatment. If you thought of Pelvic Floor muscle exercises you were right! Also know as Kegel exercises, these exercises strengthen the pelvic muscles to help prevent leakages. Check out our guide to pelvic floor exercises.

A new study using botulinum neurotoxin type A (BoNTA), conducted by the Department of Uro-Neurology at the University College London Hospital, revealed impressive results in patients with mixed cases of incontinence.

The botulinum neurotoxin type A (BoNTA) is a variation of the commonly known Botox.

Seventy-four patients (51 women, 23 men) with refractory IDO incontinence were treated with intradetrusor injections of 200 U BoNTA, they were then evaluated in a non-randomised, open-label, cohort study.

Patients with urinary frequency, urge incontinence and stress incontinence were assessed using the condition-specific Urogenital Distress Inventory (UDI 6) before and 4 weeks after the BoNTA treatment.

The outcome of complete continence was 51% (38 of 74) 4 weeks after intradetrusor injections of BoNTA.

In patients who were not completely continent, the scores show their conditions of urinary frequency, urge incontinence and stress incontinence were all reduced significantly. The inclusion of patients with mixed incontinence may have resulted in underestimation of the complete continence rate.

50% of patients reporting complete continence 4 weeks after BoNTA treatment reveal the effiency of this emerging treatment for patients with refractory IDO incontinence.

Furthermore, in those whom complete continence was not achieved, there was a notable and significant reduction in reported urge incontinence, stress incontinence, and urinary frequency.

Story source http://www.urotoday.com/

A new study shows that therapy based on natural and ancient meditation techniques can train the brain to control the bladder without medication or operations.

The research which includes meditation-based deep breathing, relaxation and visualisation techniques is an effective management strategy for urge incontinence.

Study investigator Aaron Michelfelder, said: ‘The mind-body connection has proven to be particularly valuable for women suffering from incontinence. Cognitive therapy is effective with these women, because they are motivated to make a change and regain control over their body.’

10 patients with an average age of 62 who had been diagnosed with overactive bladder were used for the study. The research subjects listened to an audio recording with a series of relaxation and visualisation exercises at home twice a day for two weeks.

By tracking the number of times they experienced incontinence before and after participating in the meditation-based therapy, most of the research subjects were able to see a dramatic improvement in symptoms.

Loyola study investigator Mary Pat FitzGerald, MD, said: ‘Nearly one in four women suffers from a pelvic floor disorder, which includes incontinence. Cognitive therapy may play a vital role in a comprehensive approach to treating this disorder.’

Allanda provide all the help, advice and products you need, to deal with your incontinence condition. For more information please click here.

Last week was marked by the American Urological Association’s Annual Meeting, the meeting was held in Chicago and a series of studies to treat incontinence and bladder conditions were presented and one in particular was under the spotlight.

A clinical trial using cognitive therapy to help patients manage overactive bladder, the study was conducted by the Loyola University Health System. Cognitive therapy employs deep-breathing and guided-imagery exercises that train the brain to control the bladder without medication or surgery.

Study investigator Aaron Michelfelder, MD, vice chair, division of family medicine, Loyola University Health System, and associate professor, department of family medicine, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, stated:

“The mind-body connection has proven to be particularly valuable for women suffering from incontinence, Cognitive therapy is effective with these women, because they are motivated to make a change and regain control over their body.”

Patients were introduced to cognitive therapy in their first consultation, then they took home a CD with a series of relaxation and visualization exercises to listen at home twice a day for two weeks, patients then registered the numbers of incontinence episodes pre and post therapy.

The Study evaluated 10 patients with a mean age of 62, all patients had to be diagnosed with overactive bladder and also had to be stable on all OAB treatments for the past three months, the data revealed that the numbers of urge incontinence episodes per week decreased from 38 to 12.

Another study investigator, Mary Pat FitzGerald, MD, urogynecologist, and associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, concluded:

“Cognitive therapy may play a vital role in a comprehensive approach to treating this disorder.”

The results of a new study presented last week at the 2009 American Urological Association (AUA) Annual Meeting, proved that a topical gel treatment considerably improves the occurrence of urge urinary incontinence episodes for women with overactive bladder.

Overactive Bladder or urge urinary incontinence is the second most common type of incontinence; basically this condition is caused by a problem with the messages between the bladder and the brain.

The bladder may tell the brain it is full too early, the bladder muscle squeezes and empties the bladder completely – often before you have a chance to get to a toilet.

The study evaluated the efficacy and safety of a treatment using an oxybutynin chloride topical gel applied once daily to rotating sites on the abdomen, upper arm/shoulder, and thigh.

Since January 2009, Oxybutynin chloride gel was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treatment of urge urinary incontinence in men and women.

Lead researcher Roger Dmochowski, MD, from the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine Nashville, Tennessee, presented the study results on April 28th and noted:

“Significantly more women achieved complete urinary continence with oxybutynin gel than with placebo — with ‘complete continence’ defined as no urinary incontinent episodes recorded in the 3-day urinary diary at any time after the study began.”

Urge incontinence is when you get an urgent desire to pass urine and sometimes urine leaks before you have time to get to the toilet.

It is usually due to an ‘overactive bladder’, treatment with bladder retraining often cures the problem.

Urge incontinence is the second most common cause of incontinence. About 3 in 10 cases of incontinence are due to urge incontinence. It can occur at any age, but commonly first starts in early adult life and more often in women.

Things you can do to improve urge incontinence:

Bladder training aims to slowly stretch the bladder so that it can hold larger and larger volumes of urine. In time, the bladder muscle should become less overactive and you should become more in control of your bladder.

Drink less caffeine, because it acts as a diuretic which causes the need to urine more, therefore putting more pressure on your bladder.

And of course pelvic floor excercises.

For more incontinence help and advice please click here.

Then why not try out the Allanda Product Finder.

Whether you’re experiencing urge incontinence or stress incontinence, the product finder can help you learn what kind of pads or pants are suitable for you and your lifestyle.

So how does it work??

- Well firstly you need to go to the page, to do this you can click here.

- Then you simply choose the correct answers from the options provided.

- Once you’ve done this click find products and Allanda will automatically select the right incontinence wear for you.

Clever hey!

Discovering you have incontinence can be a daunting experience and it’s also a subject people find they know little about.

So having some guidance about what products are best to use can be a great help. 

Stress Incontinence
This is the most common type of incontinence and is common in women after childbirth or menopause. Usually only a small amount of urine leaks out but this can be enough to cause embarrassment or concern. This often happens due to physical exertion.

Urge Incontinence
Urge is the second most common type of incontinence. It is also known as an overactive bladder. With this type of bladder weakness, the bladder contracts involuntarily, leading to the release of large amounts of urine.

Overflow Incontinence
This is common in older men, the urine outflow tube passes through the middle of the prostate, and any enlargement of this gland presses on the urethra (urine tube). This makes it difficult for the bladder to empty and fill up completely, and a pool of urine constantly remains in the bladder

Reflex Incontinence
Having no control over their bladder at all is called reflex bladder. Some people have it all their lives or it can develop after injury or illness.

Mixed Incontinence
The experience of mixed symptoms at the same time.

Faecal Incontinence
Faecal incontinence is the involuntary leakage of faecal material from the back passage. This type of incontinence may occur only occasionally or it may be a persistent problem of many years’ duration.

Whichever type of incontinence you may have, Allanda can provide the right best protection to suit you and your lifestyle.