Overactive Bladder
Overactive bladder, also called OAB, causes a frequent and sudden urge to urinate that may be difficult to control. You may feel like you need to pass urine many times during the day and night, and may also experience unintentional loss of urine.
If you have an overactive bladder, you may feel embarrassed, isolate yourself, or limit your work and social life. The good news is that a brief evaluation can determine whether there’s a specific cause for your overactive bladder symptoms.
You may be able to manage symptoms of an overactive bladder with simple behavioral strategies, such as dietary changes, timed voiding and bladder-holding techniques using your pelvic floor muscles. If these initial efforts don’t help enough with your overactive bladder symptoms, additional treatments are available.
Symptoms:-
1-Feel a sudden urge to urinate that’s difficult to control
2-Experience unintentional loss of urine immediately after an urgent need to urinate (urgency incontinence)
3-Urinate frequently, usually eight or more times in 24 hours
4-Wake up more than two times in the night to urinate (nocturia)
Causes:-
How a healthy bladder works:
The kidneys produce urine, which drains into your bladder. When you urinate, urine passes from your bladder through a tube called the urethra. A muscle in the urethra called the sphincter opens to release urine out of the body.
Involuntary bladder contractions:
Overactive bladder happens when the muscles of the bladder start to contract on their own even when the volume of urine in your bladder is low. These are called involuntary contractions, and they create an urgent need to urinate.
Several conditions may contribute to signs and symptoms of overactive bladder, including:
1-Neurological disorders, such as stroke and multiple sclerosis
2-Diabetes
3-Urinary tract infections that can cause symptoms similar to those of an overactive bladder
4-Hormonal changes during menopause in women
5-Conditions affecting the bladder, such as tumors or bladder stones
6-Factors that get in the way of urine leaving the bladder, such as enlarged prostate, constipation or previous surgery to treat incontinence
Complications:-
1-Emotional distress or depression
2-Anxiety
3-Sleep disturbances and interrupted sleep cycles
4-Issues with sexuality
Prevention:-
1-Maintain a healthy weight
2-Get regular, daily physical activity and exercise
3-Limit caffeine and alcohol
4-Quit smoking
5-Manage chronic conditions, such as diabetes, that might contribute to overactive bladder symptoms
6-Do exercises to make the pelvic floor muscles stronger. These exercises are called Kegel exercises