Pelvic muscle exercises, bladder
training and weight loss can help, doctors say
Effective treatment options exist for women
with urinary incontinence that don't
involve medication or surgery, according to new guidelines from the American
College of Physicians.
Exercises to strengthen the pelvic
floor muscles,bladder training and weight loss could help,
the group advised.
Women with stress urinary incontinence
have problems holding in urine when they laugh, cough or
sneeze. The college recommends that these women perform Kegel exercises
to strengthen the muscles that control urine flow.
Urgency urinary incontinence causes
women to suddenly feel the need to urinate and leak urine for no apparent
reason. The physicians said bladder training can help women with this form of
the condition. This behavioral therapy involves going to the bathroom on a set
schedule and slowly increasing the intervals between urination over time.
Women with more than one form of
urinary incontinence can try a combination of Kegel exercises and bladder
training, according to the guidelines published Sept. 15 in Annals of
Internal Medicine.
If bladder training isn't effective,
doctors should prescribe a medication based on a woman's individual needs and
how well she tolerates the drug, the physicians said.
Also, the symptoms of obese women
with urinary incontinence may improve with weight loss and exercise, the guidelines
noted.
Statistics show that urinary
incontinence increases with age, affecting up to 57 percent of women between 40
and 60 years old, and three-quarters of women 75 and older. Experts suggest
that many more women may have the condition but remain undiagnosed because they
haven't reported their symptoms to their doctor.
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