What to Know About Senior Urinary Incontinence
Urinary incontinence (UI) is an incredibly common condition, affecting nearly 75 percent of senior women. Older men are also affected by incontinence, but typically to a lesser degree.
Essential Information about Bladder Control Problems
Urinary incontinence can be quite disruptive to everyday life, not to mention embarrassing for those affected. If you’re experiencing the following symptoms, it may be time to speak to your doctor.
Urinary Incontinence Types and Their Symptoms
Many people experience small bladder leaks from time to time, while others lose larger amounts of urine on a more frequent basis.
Stress Incontinence
This variety is common, and occurs when pressure is put on the bladder during activities such as coughing, sneezing, laughing, lifting something heavy, or exercising. Stress incontinence is usually caused by weak pelvic floor muscles.
Urgency Incontinence
Urgency Incontinence is when you have the sudden need to urinate and drops escape before you have a chance to make it to the bathroom. This is most prevalent in older adults, and is often the result of an infection, or disease like multiple sclerosis.
Functional Incontinence
If you have a physical or mental disability, you may struggle to walk to the toilet in time. For example, a person with dementia may not realize they have to go to the bathroom or someone with chronic pain may struggle to unzip their pants.
Overflow Incontinence
Frequent or constant dribbling that occurs when your bladder never fully empties. This form usually affects men and is often caused by diabetes, kidney stones, and some medications.
Mixed Incontinence
Older adults sometimes experience a mixture of types. It’s typically a mixture of urge and stress incontinence.
Who is at Risk of UI?
As stated above, senior women are more likely to develop bladder control issues, especially if they’ve gone through pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause. However, senior men with prostate problems are at high risk as well. Certain diseases and health conditions also contribute to your chances.
Treatments
The good news is that urinary incontinence can usually be managed so that the individual is able to maintain a fairly normal lifestyle with dignity.
Treatments include:
- Bladder training
- Botox injections
- Scheduled toilet trips to prevent accidents
- Fluid and diet management, including cutting back on caffeine, alcohol, and acidic foods
- Topical estrogen
- Pelvic floor exercises
- Medications
- Surgery
- Nerve stimulators
- Wearing absorbent pads or protective underwear
- Catheter
Visiting Angels Can Help
If you or your senior loved one are dealing with incontinence issues, you may struggle to perform activities of daily living due to fear of losing bladder control. At Visiting Angels Chelmsford, we understand the challenges seniors with UI face, and offer personalized support to address these issues. Our caregivers provide dignified assistance, including help with toileting, bathing, transportation to doctor’s appointments and therapies, medication reminders, and more.
To learn more about our non-medical in-home care options, please fill out our contact form or call us at 978-244-0200.