Bladder leakage: tips to cure stress urinary incontinence for women, from lifestyle changes to surgery
- SUI is the most common form of incontinence in women under the age of 60, and can seriously impair quality of life
- Aside from lifestyle changes like drinking less, losing weight and cutting out coffee, pelvic floor exercises can be a big help, with surgery a last resort
Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is an un-fun fact of life for many women. Defined as the unintentional release of urine during exertion such as laughing, sneezing, coughing, walking or exercising, it is caused by weakness of the pelvic floor that results in inadequate support of the urethra and bladder neck, according to Hong Kong-based urology specialist Dr Vera Chung.
The prevalence of SUI increases with an ageing population. It occurs when the muscles which help to support the bladder, vagina and rectum – the pelvic floor muscles – or those at the opening of the bladder – the sphincter muscles – become weak. When this happens, urine may leak out under sudden pressure such as when coughing, sneezing or laughing.
SUI is the most common form of incontinence in women under the age of 60, accounting for more than half the cases, according to the US National Association for Continence.
Helen Lo, a sufferer who is not using her real name to maintain confidentiality, says that it “affects many of us in our forties and fifties, when everything is beginning to sag and bag a bit”.
