overactive bladder services

at Women’s Healthcare of Illinois

Bladder control problems affect tens of millions of people every day. If you’re one of them, you should speak up.

1 in 6
or 43 million adults have OAB

4.5 out of 10
do not seek help

You Are Not Alone – Find Relief for Bladder Control Problems

Overactive bladder (OAB) is a treatable condition. It’s not a normal part of aging. And you shouldn’t have to deal with it on your own.

If you’re experiencing the symptoms of common bladder control problems, it’s time to see a bladder incontinence specialist who may ask you to fill out a symptom tracker to get a better idea of your daily experience and help confirm your diagnosis.

Symptoms Treatment Options patient Stories

Symptoms of Overactive Bladder

Urge Incontinence

Urinating before you reach the bathroom
Experiencing frequent leaks
Using pads or protective garments

Urgency-frequency

Frequent, uncontrollable urge to go
Going more than 8 times a day
Feeling like your bladder is never empty

Urinary retention

Can’t tell if your bladder is full
Holding increasingly large amounts of urine
Weak or dribbling stream
Needing to use a catheter

Treatment Options

There are many ways to manage bladder control problems. Remember, if conservative treatments don’t deliver the results you need, you have more options.

Lifestyle Changes

Conservative treatments can help some people but may not work very well (or at all) for others. All of these are relatively simple behavioral changes that you may already be doing.

Diet and exercise: Changes may include decreasing your caffeine intake and getting more exercise.
Bladder retraining: Also called biofeedback, this involves delaying going to the bathroom and sticking to a strict schedule.
Pelvic floor strengthening: This can be accomplished through Kegel exercises, which involve repeatedly contracting and relaxing the muscles of the pelvic floor.

Oral Medications

When lifestyle changes fail to deliver the results you want, oral medications are the next step. These medications can help control symptoms but may cause other issues.

You have to remember to take these medications every day. Some side effects can be unpleasant, such as dry mouth, blurry vision, constipation, and hypertension.² Other side effects are more serious. In fact, data suggests that one class of drugs for OAB (anticholinergics) may increase risk of dementia in elderly people.³ Even more important, these medications don’t always work. In one survey, 72% of people said they stopped taking their medication after just six months.⁴

Advanced Therapies

If conservative treatments don’t deliver the results you want, you have more options.

Medtronic Bladder Control Therapy Delivered by the InterStim^TM System

Try it during an evaluation
Proven long-term relief

Implanting an InterStim™ system has risks similar to any surgical procedure, including swelling, bruising, bleeding, and infection. Talk with your doctor about ways to minimize these risks. Complications can occur with the evaluation, including movement of the wire, technical problems with the device, and some temporary pain. Your doctor or nurse will provide you with the information regarding how to operate the test device and inform you of other precautions related to the evaluation and activity restrictions.

learn more

Patient Stories

Sources

*Medtronic Bladder Control Therapies do not treat obstructive urinary retention.

1. American Urological Association. Diagnosis and treatment of non-neurogenic overactive bladder (OAB) in adults: an AUA/SUFU guideline. www.auanet.org/guidelines/overactive-bladder-(oab)-guideline. Accessed August 5, 2020.
2. Haab F, Castro‐Diaz D. (2005), Persistence with antimuscarinic therapy in patients with overactive bladder. Int J Clin Prac, 59: 931-937.
3. Gray S, Anderson M, Dublin S et al. Cumulative use of strong anticholinergics and incident dementia. JAMA Intern Med. 2015;175(3):401-407.
4. Yeaw J, Benner J, Walt JG et al. Comparing adherence and persistence across 6 chronic medication classes. J Manag Care Pharm. 2009:15(9): 724-736.
5. Siegel S, Noblett K, Mangel J, et al. Five year follow-up results of a prospective, multicenter study in overactive bladder subjects treated with sacral neuromodulation. 2018; 199(1), 229-236.