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Overactive bladder syndrome (OAB, commonly known as overactive bladder) is a condition of frequent, uncontrolled urination.
The presence of this ailment is indicated by the following symptoms:
• pollakiuria – repeated (more than 8 times a day) urination of small amounts of urine, caused by a painful feeling of urgency,
• urgent pressures – a sudden, overwhelming urge to urinate due to abnormal bladder contractions,
• urge incontinence – the involuntary, unstoppable leakage of urine caused by urgency in the absence of any other underlying medical conditions.
The listed symptoms may appear together or separately. The disease mainly affects women.
Symptoms of overactive bladder syndrome result from disturbances in the functioning of the nerves responsible for supplying the organs of the urinary system. Sometimes they are also associated with diseases of the large intestine (it lies in the vicinity of the bladder – therefore, e.g. in constipation, it may constrict it, causing urgency to urinate).
How is overactive bladder syndrome diagnosed?
Symptoms that occur in the course of overactive bladder syndrome may also accompany other diseases – primarily urinary and genital tract infections and kidney diseases. In order to exclude these ailments, a general urine test and the so-called urine test are performed. insert test. The latter test measures the amount of leaked urine. Your doctor will ask you to wear a urine-absorbing pad for a few hours. It is weighed before and after the test. Based on the weight measurements, it is estimated how much urine is escaping involuntarily from the bladder. An important element of diagnostics is urodynamic study. Usually it is carried out in a hospital setting; however, it does not have to be associated with the necessity of hospitalization.
Surgery is the last resort
The symptoms of an overactive bladder have a significant impact on quality of life. In professionally active patients, it is often necessary to change the current lifestyle and way of working, or to limit physical activity. Therefore, effective methods of treating this disease are still being searched for. There are three main treatments for overactive bladder syndrome: drug therapy, electro-modulation, and surgery. Patients who have failed conservative treatment methods are eligible for surgery. This applies to a small percentage of patients in whom surgery is considered a last resort.
Text: lek. med. Matylda Mazur
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