Urinary incontinence is the inadvertent release of urine. It is not a disease; rather, a symptom of a problem with a man’s urinary tract and it can happen for many reasons:
- If your bladder squeezes too hard or at the wrong time
- Muscles around the urethra are damaged or weak
- Your bladder doesn’t empty when it should. This leaves too much urine in the bladder and can cause unwanted leakage
- If something is blocking the urethra, urine can build up in the bladder and cause leaking
- Urinary incontinence happens more often in older men than in younger men, however it is not just a normal part of aging.
Factors that may increase your risk of incontinence include:
- Age: older than 65
- History of prostate surgery
- Prostate enlargement
- Chronic lung disease
- Multiple sclerosis
- Stroke
- Depression
- Dementia
- Diabetes
- Spinal cord injury
- Use of certain substances or medicines
- Caffeine
- Alcohol
- Beta-blockers
- Alpha-agonists
- Cholinergic agents
- Cyclophosphamide
Types of Urinary Incontinence
Male UI can be short-term or more serious and chronic. Short-term incontinence is typically caused by other health problems or treatments, and chronic UI comes in many forms, such as:
- Stress incontinence happens when you sneeze, cough, laugh, lift objects, or do something that puts stress or strain on your bladder
- Urge incontinence is an urge to urinate that’s so strong that you can’t make it to the toilet in time
- Overflow incontinence happens when your bladder doesn’t empty as it should and then leaks urine later
- Total incontinence happens when you are always leaking urine
- Functional incontinence happens when you can’t make it to the bathroom in time to urinate
Ready to schedule a consultation?
Call (301) 477-2000 or fill out an Online Appointment Request Form to setup your initial consultation.
At MAUA we are experts on the subject of male urinary incontinence diagnosis and treatment. Please contact us if you have any questions or want to know more about our various treatment options and schedule a consultation.
