Beth came to see me in 2005. She was a pleasant, bright 68-year-old woman complaining of frequent, sudden urinary leakage and stress urinary incontinence (SUI) any time she stood up or moved. She had 2 or 3 strokes in the Spring of last year and she said that she had minimal problems with incontinence prior to these strokes. By the time she came to see me, she said that she often lost large amounts of urine suddenly, with no warning and no sense of the “urge” to urinate.
Bladder Fitness Reveals The #1 Secret To Stop An Over Active Bladder Attack In Seconds
According to Beth, she had several complications with her bladder following these strokes and was told by a urologist that she was suffering from a neurogenic bladder. She said hr bladder spasms were so severe that she was unable to keep a catheter in because the spasming from the bladder would “spit out” the catheters, even a suprapubic catheter.
Urodynamic testing performed by the urologist indicated that she had normal bladder capacity but she would leak with standing and when coughing in a reclining position. Providing support to the periurethral area such as inserting a tampon into the vagina, stopped the SUI. Further urodynamic testing showed low pressure levels around the urethra, and low bladder pressures as well as a cystocele. According to the urologist, her incontinence, bladder weakness and weak bladder sphincters were most likely related to her stroke.
It appeared that Beth’s bladder control problems were directly related to her strokes and we wanted to apply behavioral biofeedback to treating her bladder problems. During her first session, we discussed the physiology of stress incontinence and the necessity of rebuilding pelvic floor strength. She knew about Kegels but had never done them consistently. We started her on a Kegel Exercise Workout Program and determined she might benefit from EMG bladder biofeedback training.
Biofeedback + Bladder Training
We also discussed bladder retraining techniques and the possibility of bladder irritants being a factor. Beth reported a slight decrease in urinary leakage during the first ten days of starting the Bladder Fitness Program . After another couple of weeks she was able to get up into the standing position without urinary leakage and was able to get to the bathroom for her first morning toileting trip without leaking on the way to the restroom. These results were immediately encouraging.
She returned for a third session three weeks later reporting much improved control over her neurogenic bladder.
