Overactive Bladder

The following is an Editorial Resource from YourTotalHealth. 

Key Symptoms

Reviewed by: David O. Sussman, D.O., FACOS

Are your frequent bathroom trips making you wonder if you have an overactive bladder? Here are the symptoms your doctor will look for:

• Urinating eight or more times in a 24-hour span
• Waking two or more times at night to urinate
• Needing to urinate suddenly and feeling like you can't hold it
  
  

But diagnosing overactive bladder is not as simple as mentally checking off the above. Those symptoms are also common with other conditions, such as urinary tract infections, kidney problems, prostate problems in men, or, more rarely, bladder or prostate cancer. Your doctor will usually run tests to rule out these conditions before making a diagnosis of OAB. Be prepared to discuss any medications and supplements you are currently taking, in case your symptoms are a side effect of one of them.

Symptoms of OAB are also similar to some types of urinary incontinence. This can be confusing for patients because the conditions are often grouped together and the differences between them can be difficult to understand.

In general, OAB involves symptoms related to how urgent and frequent is the need to urinate. It may or may not involve urine leakage or dribbling, known as incontinence. So, it is easy to see how these conditions are interrelated—and often confused, even within the medical community.

In addition, there are several kinds of incontinence. The one that may overlap with OAB is called “urge” incontinence. With this form, you have a sudden urgency to urinate, but don't have enough time to get to the bathroom before there is urine leakage. The same definition can be used to describe a type of overactive bladder called “wet” OAB, so some experts consider this the same condition. However, with OAB, you not only have an urgent need to go, but it can occur several times a day. It’s that combination of urgency and frequency that many doctors use to diagnose OAB.

Other forms of incontinence are unrelated to OAB. With the “stress” form, you may find yourself leaking when you lift something, sneeze or laugh. With “overflow” incontinence, you have frequent or constant feeling that you have to urinate, along with small urine leaks, but when you do go to the bathroom, your urine flow is weak and it never feels like your bladder empties. While it’s possible to have more than one condition, such as wet OAB and stress incontinence, they are different conditions.

The below chart highlights which bladder symptoms are associated with the two kinds of OAB, and the “urge” form of incontinence that is often linked with OAB:

Whether your symptoms indicate overactive bladder, incontinence or a combination, what matters is that you can reduce them. Talk to your doctor and get diagnosed. You may be surprised by how much you can do to minimize the impact OAB has on your life.

What's Next: 10 Essential Facts

• Am I at Risk?
  
• 9 Ways to Take Charge
  
• The Right Treatment
  

Review date: 07-31-2009