When someone also has Alzheimer’s disease, their mental state, memory and their ability to communicate their needs may also be affected. This article takes a look at the types of urinary incontinence people experience and how it can dictate treatment approaches.
The Importance of Investigating Incontinence
There are a number of different types of incontinence and they are important in as much as they affect the type of treatment that can be offered to cure or provide maximum assistance and comfort to the sufferer of this difficult and stigmatizing problem. It is always important to remember that someone with Alzheimer’s disease can get sick too and the onset of incontinence, or changes in a person’s pattern of passing urine should always investigated by a health professional so that the appropriate treatment is implemented.
What Type of Incontinence is it?
These are the main types that you should be aware of:
Urge Incontinence: is when you know you want to urinate but you cannot hold it long enough to make it to the restroom in time. Urine can leak the instant you feel the urge to pass it. Even the sound of running water can provide the stimulus.
Stress Incontinence: is the most common type of incontinence and one a lot of women who have had children will relate to. Urine leaks during coughing, sneezing and laughing, when lifting heavy objects or in any sort of exercise that puts pressure on the bladder.
Overflow Incontinence: is when the quantity of urine exceeds the capacity of the bladder and leakage of urine then occurs. You may feel as if your bladder is never fully empty and some people with overflow incontinence can spend long periods of time in the bathroom because of this unpleasant feeling. Other people do not feel as though their bladder is full but dribble and pass urine with little control. This type can be due to a physical obstruction, a common example of this is prostate problems in men.
Functional Incontinence: is when you know you want to go to urinate but because of a physical or communication problem you cannot get to the restroom quickly enough.
Reflex Incontinence: occurs due to spinal or neurological trauma or disease when there is little or no sensation or voluntary control of the bladder.
Mixed Type Incontinence: some people will experience more than one type, so-called mixed type incontinence. For example stress incontinence may become functional type as their Alzheimer’s disease progresses.
Incontinence can also be a result of surgical procedures such as prostate or rectal surgery and caesarean surgery.
Summary
The different types of incontinence will influence and decide the treatment plan that will be required. Assessment of the problem by physical examination, taking a medical history, talking to the person with incontinence and their caregivers will lead to an accurate diagnosis.
