Bladder Leakage Procedures

Bladder leakage is a problem for millions of women. Procedures for bladder leakage can be conservative and include treatments such as biofeedback and exercises to strengthen the bladder. Sometimes medication can help improve bladder leakage problems. For those who don't respond to less invasive procedures, surgery may be needed.

Behavioral

• Keeping a bladder diary can help the doctor detect a pattern in urinary habits. Use behavioral treatments that include timed voiding and kegel exercises. Timed voiding is going to the bathroom at a specific times throughout the day to gain more control over the bladder. As control is gained, the time between bathroom visits is extended. Kegel exercises are done to strengthen the specific muscles that help to hold urine in the bladder.

Medication

• Medications may be prescribed for a bladder leakage problem to block nerve signals to the bladder. The medications are from a class of drugs called anticholinergics that relax the bladder muscles and prevent the bladder from spasming.If you have glaucoma, consult a doctor to see if these medications are safe to take. If you take medicine for swelling or high blood pressure, you may have bladder leakage problems because of the medication. Talk to a doctor about switching to another prescription to help stop bladder leakage problems.

Biofeedback

• The goal of biofeedback is to help you become aware of your body's functioning. Biofeedback helps to gain control over bladder muscles to stop bladder leakage. It can be used in conjunction with pelvic muscle exercises and electrical stimulation to prevent bladder spasms and relieve stress.

Injections

• Injections help to reduce stress incontinence. This is done by injecting bulking agents such as collagen and carbon spheres into the tissues near the neck of the bladder and the urethra. The bulking agents thicken the tissues and close the bladder opening. This bladder leakage procedure usually takes about a half an hour using local anesthesia or sedation. Repeat injection may be needed because the body will eliminate the bulking agents used in the injections.

Surgery

• Surgery for bladder leakage problems may be done in one of three different ways. A type of surgery that may be performed is called retropublic suspension. In this surgery, sutures are attached to the neck of the bladder and ligaments in the pelvis to support the bladder opening preventing bladder leakage. The most common surgery is the sling procedure. Strips of a person's own tissue or synthetic material is used to create a sling around the bladder and urethra to close the urethra opening and prevent bladder leakage.