User:Mr. Ibrahem/Urinary incontinence

Urinary incontinence (UI), also known as involuntary urination, is any uncontrolled leakage of urine. It is a symptom rather than a disease in and of itself. Incontinence that occurs when sleeping is known as nocturnal enuresis (bed wetting). It can negatively impacts quality of life. Complications can include urinary tract infections, pressure ulcers, depression, and side effects from medications.

Risk factors include pregnancy, childbirth, menopause, overweight, constipation, pelvic surgery, urinary tract infections, and certain medications. There are five main types of incontinence: stress incontinence due to poor closure of the bladder; urge incontinence due to an overactive bladder; mixed incontinence involving a combination of stress and urge incontinence; functional incontinence were people are unable to get to the bathroom; and overflow incontinence due to either poor bladder contraction or blockage.

Treatment depends on the type. This may include pelvic floor muscle training, bladder training, weight loss, stopping smoking, electrical stimulation, medications, a pessary, or surgery. Behavioral therapy generally works better than medication for stress and urge incontinence. The benefit of medications is small and long term safety is unclear. Outcomes are variable.

Urinary incontinence is common in older people. It; however, is often underreported. Women are affected twice as often as men. More than 40% of women over 65 are affected.