Skip to main content
        
        U.S. flag
                An official website of the United States government
                    Here’s how you know
                Here’s how you know**Official websites use .gov**
                        
                        A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
            **Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
                        
                        A **lock** (
                        Locked padlock icon
                        ) or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.Search
    Menu

        Search for Information from NIDDK
            
            Entire Site
                Research & Funding
                Health Information
                News
                About NIDDKSearch

Home
            Research & Funding
                                Expand Research & Funding
                                Current Funding Opportunities
                                                    Research Programs & Contacts
                                                    Human Subjects Research
                                                    Funding Process
                                            Research Training & Career Development
                                                    Funded Grants & Grant History
                                                    Research Resources
                                            Research at NIDDK
                                                    Technology Advancement & Transfer
                                                    Meetings & Workshops
                        Health Information
                                Expand Health Information
                                Health Topics
                                                                                                    Diabetes
                                                    Digestive Diseases
                                                    Kidney Disease
                                                    Weight Management
                                                    Liver Disease
                                                    Urologic Diseases
                                                    Endocrine Diseases
                                                    Diet & Nutrition
                                                    Blood Diseases
                                                    Diagnostic Tests
                                            La información de la salud en español
                                                    Health Statistics
                                                    Healthy Moments Radio Broadcast
                                                    Clinical Trials
                                            For Health Professionals
                                                    Diabetes Discoveries & Practice Blog
                                                    Community Health & Outreach
                        News
                                Expand News
                                News Archive
                                                    For Reporters
                                            Meetings & Workshops
                                                    Media Library
                                            Follow Us
                        About NIDDK
                                Expand About NIDDK
                                Meet the Director
                                                    Offices & Divisions
                                                    Staff Directory
                                                    Budget & Legislative Information
                                            Advisory & Coordinating Committees
                                                    Strategic Plans & Reports
                                                    Research Areas
                                                    FAQs
                                            Jobs at NIDDK
                                                    Visit Us
                                                    Contact Us Home
                    Health Information
                    Urologic Diseases
                    Bladder Control Problems (Urinary Incontinence)
                    Definition & Facts

    Related Topics
    English
        English
                Español
        Bladder Control Problems (Urinary Incontinence)
        Definition & Facts
                Symptoms & Causes
                Diagnosis
                Treatment
                Prevention
                Clinical TrialsDefinition & Facts for Bladder Control Problems (Urinary Incontinence)
**In this section:**
What are bladder control problems?
    Do bladder control problems have another name?
    What are the types of bladder control problems?
    How common are bladder control problems?
    Who is more likely to develop bladder control problems?
    What are the complications of bladder control problems?What are bladder control problems?
Bladder control problems are conditions that affect the way a person holds or releases urine. Accidental loss or leaking of urine, called urinary incontinence (UI), is one of the most common bladder control problems. UI is not a disease but a condition that may be related to another health problem or life event, such as prostate problems or pregnancy.
Health care professional talking with a female patient in an exam room.Talk with a health care professional about how to manage your bladder control problem and lifestyle changes you can make.
Bladder control problems can be a small annoyance or can greatly affect your quality of life. You may be too embarrassed or afraid to participate in activities because of these problems, or you may be unable to complete your normal routine. For example, you may lose urine while running or coughing, or you may leak urine before you can get to a toilet.
Bladder control problems are common. Proper treatment may improve your quality of life. Talk with a health care professional about urine leaks. Health care professionals—especially gynecologists, urologists, and geriatricians—often talk with people about bladder control problems. Health care professionals can help treat the problem or manage the symptoms by suggesting simple lifestyle changes. Caregivers may find help from a health care professional or a support group. The sooner you get help, the sooner UI may improve.
Do bladder control problems have another name?
Bladder control problems that cause urine to leak are also called urinary incontinence (UI), urine leakage, and urine loss.
What are the types of bladder control problems?
Types of bladder control problems are identified by their symptoms. The most common bladder control problems include
stress incontinence
    urgency incontinence
    reflex incontinence
    overflow incontinence
    functional incontinence
    temporary incontinence
    bedwettingStress incontinence
Stress incontinence occurs when movement—coughing, sneezing, laughing, or physical activity—puts pressure on the bladder and causes urine to leak.
Urgency incontinence
Urgency incontinence occurs when you have a strong urge or need to urinate, and urine leaks before you can get to a toilet. Urgency incontinence is often referred to as overactive bladder. This type of incontinence happens when certain nerves and bladder muscles don’t work together to hold urine in the bladder, and the urine is released at the wrong time.
You can have urgency and stress incontinence at the same time, which is called mixed incontinence.
Reflex incontinence
With reflex incontinence, urine leaks without a warning or urge to urinate. This type of incontinence often happens when your bladder nerves are damaged and don’t “talk” to your brain correctly. During reflex incontinence, the bladder contracts, or reflexes, at the wrong time, causing urine to leak. Nerve damage from health conditions, such as
multiple sclerosis, or from trauma, such as a spinal cord injury, are among the causes of reflex incontinence. Reflex incontinence is sometimes called “unaware” or “unconscious” incontinence.
Overflow incontinence
Overflow incontinence occurs when the bladder doesn’t empty all the way, causing too much urine to stay in the bladder. With overflow incontinence, urine leaks because the bladder becomes too full.
Functional incontinence
Functional incontinence occurs when a physical disability or barrier, or a problem speaking or thinking, prevents you from reaching the toilet in time. For example, a person in a wheelchair may not be able to get to a toilet in time, someone with arthritis may have trouble unbuttoning his or her pants, or a person with Alzheimer’s disease may not realize he or she needs time to get to the toilet.
Temporary incontinence
Temporary, or transient, incontinence lasts a short time due to a temporary situation, such as using a certain medicine or having an illness that causes leaking. For example, a urinary tract infection (UTI) or a bad cough may cause temporary incontinence.
Bedwetting
Bedwetting, also called nocturnal enuresis, doesn’t only occur in children. Some adults leak urine while sleeping for a variety of reasons. Certain medicines or drinking caffeine or alcohol at night can make it hard to sleep through the night without leaking urine. In some cases, the bladder can’t hold enough urine overnight. Lifestyle changes often can improve these symptoms.
Some people wet the bed because they don’t produce enough of a certain hormone at night, which could be a sign of diabetes insipidus. Other health problems, such as a UTI, kidney stones, congestive heart failure, chronic kidney disease, prostate enlargement, or obstructive sleep apnea, can cause you to wet the bed or urinate frequently at night.
How common are bladder control problems?
Bladder control problems are common, especially in women. Researchers estimate that approximately half of all women experience UI.1 Women are more likely to develop UI during and after pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause. These events and how the female urinary tract is built make UI more common in women than men. Although UI is common, it is not a routine part of being a woman or getting older.
As many as 1 in 3 men over the age of 65 may lose urine by accident, and approximately half of men who seek treatment for lower urinary tract symptoms experience UI.2,3 A man is more likely to develop UI with age because prostate problems occur more often with age.
A pregnant woman watering a plant.Bladder control problems are common, especially in women during and after pregnancy or childbirth. A health care professional can help treat or manage your problem.Who is more likely to develop bladder control problems?
Factors that make you more likely to develop UI include
being female
    being older—as you age, your urinary tract muscles weaken, making it harder to hold in urine
    life events, such as pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause in women and prostate problems in men
    health problems, such as diabetes, obesity, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, or long-lasting constipation
    smoking
    birth defects that involve a problem with the structure of the urinary tractYour health care professional can help find the cause of your bladder control problems and talk with you about your options for treatment.
You are more likely to have a particular type of UI if a family member has that same type of UI. For example, bedwetting often runs in families, and children may outgrow the problem at about the same age their parents did.
What are the complications of bladder control problems?
Reduced physical activity
Physical activity is important for overall health and may prevent further bladder control problems. However, some activities such as running, jumping, or brisk walking may cause some people with UI to leak. If you haven’t found a medicine or other treatment that’s right for you, or you want extra peace of mind, new incontinence briefs and pads are discreet and effective at absorbing leaks and controlling odor. New technology and designs can make these products more comfortable to wear and may give you the confidence to get moving again.
Talk with your health care professional if your bladder control problems are making it difficult for you to be active.
A woman and a man exercise in a park.Bladder problems don’t have to limit your activities. Getting help from a health care professional may keep you moving.
Emotional distress
Untreated bladder problems can upset your lifestyle. You may avoid activities you once enjoyed. You might stop going to movies, meetings, or events because you don’t want to use the restroom in the middle of an activity or have an accident. These lifestyle changes can lead to depression or social anxiety.
If you often feel depressed or anxious about living with bladder control problems, talk with a health care professional.
Intimacy problems
Some people may avoid intimacy because they worry they may leak urine during sex. Talk with a health care professional if your bladder control problems are getting in the way of your sex life. Gynecologists and urologists regularly talk with people about health problems and can offer solutions.
Related bladder symptoms and problems
If you have UI, you are more likely to have other bladder symptoms or problems, such as
urinary frequency
    getting up from sleep to urinate, called nocturia
    difficulty urinating
    trouble emptying your bladder fully, called urinary retention
    dribbling urine after you think you’ve finishedWhen speaking about other symptoms you may have with UI, health care professionals may use the term LUTS, which stands for lower urinary tract symptoms.
Working with a health care professional to prevent and treat these related symptoms and problems is important for the health of your bladder and your overall health.
References
[1] Lee UJ, Feinstein L, Ward JB, et al. Prevalence of urinary incontinence among a nationally representative sample of women, 2005–2016: findings from the Urologic Diseases in America Project. *Journal of Urology*. 2021;205(6):1718–1724. doi:10.1097/JU.0000000000001634
[2] Clemens JQ. Urinary incontinence in men. UpToDate. Updated December 2, 2019. Accessed May 6, 2021. www.uptodate.com/contents/urinary-incontinence-in-men
[3] Helfand BT, Smith AR, Lai HH, et al. Prevalence and characteristics of urinary incontinence in a treatment-seeking male prospective cohort—results from the LURN Study. *Journal of Urology*. 2018;200(2)397–404. doi:10.1016/j.juro.2018.02.075        Last Reviewed July 2021
Sharethis page

Print
    Facebook
    X
    Email
    
    More Options
    
    WhatsApp
    LinkedIn
    Reddit
    Pinterest
    
    Copy Link
                *Previous:*
                Bladder Control Problems (Urinary Incontinence)
            *Next:*
                Symptoms & Causes

                This content is provided as a service of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
(NIDDK), part of the National Institutes of Health. NIDDK translates and disseminates research findings to increase knowledge and understanding about health and disease among patients, health professionals, and the public. Content produced by NIDDK is carefully reviewed by NIDDK scientists and other experts. Contact Us
**Hours:** 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET, Monday - Friday**Email:** healthinfo@niddk.nih.gov**Phone:** +1-800-860-8747**TTY:** +711
Chat
Live Chat Available8:30 a.m - 5 p.m. ETMonday - Friday
Follow Us
LinkedIn
X
Facebook
YouTube
InstagramNIH... Turning Discovery Into Health ®
Privacy Policy
    Freedom of Information Act
    Accessibility
    Disclaimers
    Copyright
    Vulnerability Disclosure Policy
Site Map
    For Staff Only
    Get Email Updates
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
    National Institutes of Health