Many of the conditions related to urology are more commonly thought as men’s. However, there are quite a lot of urological conditions that are specific to women. It is important for women to become aware of these problems and be knowledgeable about when to visit the Best Urologist in karachi for the diagnosis and treatments.
Let’s take a deeper look at 7 common women’s urological problems:
1. Urinary Incontinence
It is a medical term for accidental bladder leakage. It is more common in older women but it’s not a normal part of aging. It’s not a disease itself but more like an indication of other health problems. There are three main types of chronic urinary incontinence.
- Stress Incontinence occurs when you sneeze, cough, laugh, jog or do other things that put pressure on your bladder.
- Urge Incontinence happens when you have a strong urge to urinate but can’t reach the toilet in time.
- Overflow Incontinence is an inability to empty your bladder completely.
Causes
- It is usually caused by problems with the muscles and nerves that help the bladder hold or pass urine.
- Pregnancy, childbirth and menopause can cause problems with these muscles and nerves.
- Being overweight can also be a cause.
Symptoms
Signs or symptoms of urinary incontinence look like:
- Going to the bathroom more than usual.
- Urinating while sleeping (bed wetting)
Treatment
Here is what urologists recommend to treat Urinary Incontinence:
- Kegel exercises
- Bladder training
- Losing weight
- Changing your eating habits
- Quitting smoking
- Treating constipation
- Medication like vaginal pessary
- Injecting bulking agents
- Nerve stimulation
- Surgery
2. Overactive Bladder
Overactive bladder is a condition where women suffer from an urgent need to urinate that is difficult to control.
Symptoms
- Urinating more than 8 times in a day
- Sudden urges to urinate
- Experiencing urinary incontinence
Treatment
This is what helps is treating overactive bladder:
- Limiting fluid intake
- Avoiding tobacco, caffeinated and carbonated beverages, alcohol, spicy food and acidic fruits.
- Losing weight
- Retaining your bladder
- Bladder pacemaker
- Percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation
- Bladder botox injections
- Surger
3. Urinary Tract Infections
UTIs occur when bacteria gets into the urethra. They either occur in the bladder or kidney.
Symptoms
- Burning and stinging while urinating
- Frequent or urgent urination
- Fever
- Pain in sides or back
- Nausea or vomiting
Treatment
UTIs are treated like this:
- Antibiotics
- Pain medication
- In severe cases, IV antibiotics and fluids
4. Interstitial Cystitis
Interstitial cystitis, also called Bladder Pain Syndrome, causes people to have bladder pain and frequent urges to urinate. This is a common urological disease in women. Doctors suspect that it is caused by abnormal changes in bladder lining.
Symptoms
- Bladder pain that gets better after urinating
- Constant urge to urinate
If you have any of ICs symptoms visit the best Best Urologist in rawalpindi at your earliest.
Treatment
- Bladder training
- Physical therapy
- Medication
- Surgery
5. Cystocele/Prolapsed Bladder
It happens when the wall between a woman’s vagina and bladder weakens and the bladder drops into vagina. It is commonly caused by things that increase pressure on pelvic muscles.
Causes
- Vaginal births
- Family history
- Obesity
- Intense physical activity
- Hysterectomy
- Constipation
- Frequent coughing
- Aging and a drop in estrogen
Symptoms
- Feeling or seeing something bulging through the vaginal opening
- Difficulty in emptying the bladder
- Frequent UTIs
- Feeling of fullness, heaviness or pain in the pelvic area or lower back
- Bladder bulging into or out of vagina.
- Painful sex
Treatment
- Weight Loss
- Estrogen replacement therapy
- Kegel exercises
- Vaginal pessary
- Surgery
6. Pelvic Organ Prolapse
It happens when one or more of the organs in the pelvis drop down from their normal position and bulge into vagina. These organs can be the uterus, bowel, bladder or top of vagina.
Symptoms
- Bulge, fullness or pressure in vagina
- Fullness, pressure or aching in the pelvis
- Ache in lower back
- Dyspareunia
- Vaginal spotting
- Stress and urge incontinence
- Fecal incontinence
Treatment
- Vaginal pessary
- Pelvic floor exercises
- Surgery
7. Pelvic Floor Dysfunction
It is the inability to correctly relax and coordinate your pelvic floor muscles to have a bowel movement.
Causes
- Traumatic injuries to pelvic area
- Pregnancy
- Overusing your pelvic muscles
- Pelvic surgery
- Being overweight
- Advancing age
Symptoms
- Frequently needing to use the bathroom
- Constipation
- Stool or urine incontinence
- Painful urination
- Lower back pain without any other cause
- Feeling ongoing pain in your pelvic region, genitals or rectum
Treatment
- Biofeedback
- Pelvic floor physical therapy
- Medications
- Relaxing techniques
