ÁREA DE CONTENIDO
Urinary incontinence
Unidad de incontinencia urinaria
Urinary incontinence is an increasingly common health problem in our society. What is more, it affects a very broad age range -anyone aged 18 to 80-, affecting both men and women.
People who suffer from this problem notice how their quality of life is seriously affected, sometimes not even knowing where to find help and other times becoming resigned to suffering this problem in secret.
At the Urogynaecological Re-education Unit it is our intention to provide the necessary information to deal with this condition and find adequate solutions, as this problem, far from becoming a “taboo” subject, has various different treatment possibilities.
To try and clarify any questions that you might have about this type of treatment we will now explain a number of concepts:
What is Urogynaecological Re-education?
It consists of a set of specialised techniques to "re-educate" certain muscles in which function has been involuntarily lost.
Which muscles do these techniques focus on?
All the muscles that delimit and form the pelvis and the pelvic floor.
What is the pelvic floor?
From the muscular point of view, it can be defined as a set of ligaments, tendons and muscle groups that work together and help to support the pelvic viscera (bladder, rectum and uterus), preventing them from descending, with their consequent loss of function.
How do we know that there has been any loss of function in these pelvic floor muscles?
The most common alteration is the onset of involuntary leakage of urine that occurs occasionally or continuously when performing daily efforts. It can also lead to the involuntary leakage of gases and faeces and the appearance of sexual dysfunctions and pelvic pain.
Who is at risk of suffering pelvic floor problems?
Pregnant women: Due to the weakening of the pelvic floor during the nine months of pregnancy and after childbirth.
Abdominal and/or perineal surgery: such as operations on the prostate or the uterus, which sometimes lead to urinary incontinence.
Certain professions: mainly elite sports people, musicians and those whose work involves standing up for most of the day and also involves physical efforts that put strain on that area.
Menopause
A deficiency of oestrogens leads to increased muscle weakening and, in turn, to incontinence.
The specialised treatments offered by the Urogynaecological Re-education Unit are conservative treatments that are based on completely painless techniques performed individually or in combination with other types of medical treatment that are intended to prevent and cure urinary incontinence in all the aforementioned cases. These techniques consist of:
- An individual assessment of each patient's muscles to develop a personalised approach to treatment.
- Teaching specific exercises for the pelvic floor and other muscles that are involved in urinary continence by means of specific apparatus and manual techniques.
- Intravaginal or intra-anal electrostimulation.
- Specific abdominal muscle training.