Urinary incontinence

"Urinary incontinence | NHS inform Home Illnesses and conditions Symptoms and self-help Tests and treatments Healthy living Care, support and rights Scotlands Service Directory 0 Home Illnesses and conditions Kidneys, bladder and prostate Urinary incontinence Urinary incontinence Urinary incontinence is when you pee by accident. It can happen when doing exercise like running, lifting weights at the gym or jumping on a trampoline. Urinary incontinence can affect anyone. It tends to be more common in women. Further information about urinary incontinence in women Although its common, it shouldnt be thought of as normal. There are things you can do to reduce the chance of this happening and improve your symptoms. How to prevent urinary incontinence There are things you can do that may help reduce the chance of urinary incontinence in the future. Do strengthen you pelvic floor muscles with simple pelvic floor exercises stay active maintain a healthy weight avoid or cut down on alcohol and caffeinated drinks, such as coffee, tea and some fizzy drinks Types of urinary incontinence The 2 most common types of urinary incontinence are: stress incontinence  pee leaking out when your bladder is under pressure (life when you laugh, cough, sneeze, exercise or lift something heavy) urge incontinence  feeling a sudden and very intense need to pee and being unable to stop it Less common types of incontinence are: mixed incontinence  having both stress and urge incontinence overflow incontinence (also called chronic urinary retention)  the bladder cannot completely empty total incontinence  severe and continuous urinary incontinence When to get medical advice Speak to your GP practice if: You have any symptoms of urinary incontinence, such as: peeing by accident feeling a sudden need to pee and are unable to stop it What causes urinary incontinence? The causes of urinary incontinence depend on the type. Certain things can increase the chances of urinary incontinence developing, including: being overweight a family history of incontinence getting older  but incontinence doesnt happen just because youve aged if youre a woman, pregnancy and vaginal birth if youre a man, having surgery to remove the prostate gland Diagnosing urinary incontinence Your GP will ask you some questions to understand what may be causing the incontinence and how bad it is. They may also: try to rule out other things that could be causing your symptoms, such as a urinary tract infection suggest you keep a diary of how much fluid you drink and how often you have to pee carry out a pelvic examination (in women) or rectal examination (in men)  as this is an intimate examination, there may be another person (chaperone) present refer you to a specialist, usually a physiotherapist Treatment for urinary incontinence Treatments which do not involve taking medication or having surgery are usually tried first. These include: treating the underlying cause, if urinary incontinence is caused by another condition lifestyle changes  such as reducing your caffeine intake, changing how much you drink, and maintaining a healthy weight pelvic floor muscle training  your healthcare professional will explain how to do these exercises bladder training  techniques to increase the length of time between feeling the need to go to the toilet and peeing Incontinence products (like pads or pants) arent a treatment for urinary incontinence. But you might find them helpful while you are waiting for assessment or for a treatment to start working. If these treatments dont work for you, your doctor may suggest trying other treatments, like medication or surgery. This will depend on the cause and type of incontinence you are experiencing. Its ok to ask any questions about your care to help you get the information you might need. Source: Scottish Government - Opens in new browser window Last updated: 11 March 2024 How can we improve this page? Help us improve NHS inform Thank You Your feedback has been received Dont include personal information e.g. name, location or any personal health conditions. Email Address e.g. you@example.com Message Maximum of 500 characters Send feedback Add this page to\n            Info For Me Also on NHS inform Urinary incontinence in women Pelvic floor muscles Menopause It's OK To Ask Urinary tract infection (UTI) Bowel incontinence Urinary catheterisation Other health sites Pelvic, Obstetric and Gynaecological Physiotherapy: Bladder & Bowel Incontinence Pelvic, Obstetric and Gynaecological Physiotherapy: Promoting continence with physiotherapy (PDF, 609 KB) Pelvic, Obstetric and Gynaecological Physiotherapy: Mens pelvic health The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy: Training for pelvic floor muscles Age UK: Urinary incontinence NHS inform About NHS inform Editorial policy Contact us Webchat Give feedback about NHS inform Info for Me tool Terms and conditions Privacy and cookies policy Freedom of information (FOI) Accessibility Other languages and formats  2023 NHS 24  v1.1.1.17852"