Commonly Ignored Bladder Symptoms And Their Causes
Symptoms of bladder problems are often ignored for a variety of reasons. Bladder symptoms such as incontinence (the inability to control urination) and urine leakage are sometimes dismissed as a symptom of the aging process. Patients can be reluctant to discuss their bladder symptoms with their physician due to embarrassment.
Aging does make you more prone to some types of bladder symptoms, however patients should not accept that bladder symptoms are part of aging; they are not. Approximately 30% of adults over the age of fifty report some type of bladder symptoms.
The following is a list of bladder symptoms that people commonly ignore when they shouldn’t. Only a doctor can tell you if they are symptoms of bladder problems that are serious or life threatening. Even if they are not serious, symptoms of bladder problems can affect the quality of your daily life and the activities you participate in.
• Incontinence
There are three types of incontinence: stress incontinence, urge incontinence and regular incontinence. Stress incontinence is the loss of urine while engaged in such activities as coughing, sneezing, laughing, or exercising (even just walking). Urge incontinence is characterized by uncontrollable urges to urinate that may result in voiding before reaching the toilet. Regular incontinence is the inability to control when you urinate (it is not dependent on activity or circumstance). Incontinence is indicative of some type of underlying bladder issue.
• Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (LUTS)
Lower urinary tract symptoms include frequent urination, straining or pushing to start a urine stream while urinating, getting up at night to urinate (nocturia), and the feeling of needing to urinate immediately (urgency). LUTS are symptoms of bladder problems such as benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH) or prostate enlargement that is not cancerous. Sometimes the cause of BPH is unknown, but does occur more frequently in men over thirty.
• Bladder Cancer
Blood in the urine is the most common symptom of bladder cancer. Other conditions such as severe bladder infection and kidney stones can also cause hematuria (blood in urine). Both of these require treatment by a doctor. If you are having chronic bladder infections this may also indicate symptoms of bladder cancer.
• Interstitial Cystitis
Bladder symptoms of interstitial cystitis include urinary urgency, urinary frequency (greater than 8 times in a day), pain in the abdomen between the navel and urinary opening (urethra), pain that radiates from this area to the thighs or back. The symptoms can occur at any age, is more prevalent in women (figures estimate as many 90% of cases are women) and may be intermittent (come and go) or be constant. The cause of interstitial cystitis is unknown but is thought to be caused by the immune system attacking the lining of the bladder.
• Urinary Tract Infections (UTI)
Over half of all adults may suffer form a UTI at some point in their lives. Women have a much higher incidence of bladder infection due to the anatomy of the urethra (there is a shorter distance for bacteria to travel to the bladder). Bladder symptoms such as pain, burning, and frequent urination are common symptoms of a UTI. The urine may also become a darker color and become cloudy. A UTI left untreated and unresolved can lead to a life threatening infection in the blood and rest of the body. A UTI is very easy to treat with antibiotics in most cases.
Discussing your bladder symptoms with your doctor will allow your physician to check you for symptoms of bladder diseases that may or may not be serious. Even if non-life threatening, bladder symptoms at minimum affect your daily life. Consult your doctor for medications and treatments available to help you manage your bladder symptoms.
