Wisdom, grandchildren and retirement often come to mind when thinking about aging. For millions of women, there is another thing that’s also top of mind: urinary incontinence. The fact is, it doesn’t have to be this way.

“Urinary incontinence isn’t something you have to live with,” says Arturo Menchaca, a urogynecologist with Adventist Hinsdale and Adventist La Grange Memorial Hospitals. “Fortunately, it can be treated.”

Urinary incontinence (UI) is the involuntary loss of urine. Women have this condition twice as often as men due to pregnancy, menopause and the structure of their urinary tract. “Although the likelihood of experiencing UI increases with age, it can affect anyone,” Dr. Menchaca says. “I once performed surgery on an 18-year-old woman who had never been pregnant.”

Treatment depends on the type of UI, and Dr. Menchaca describes two of the main types below:

Overactive bladder occurs when the muscles in the bladder involuntarily contract. Overactive bladder can be wet, which is having the urge to urinate with incontinence, or dry, which is frequent urges without incontinence. Medications that relax the bladder can be an effective treatment.

Stress urinary incontinence occurs when physical changes, such as pregnancy and childbirth, increase abdominal pressure and put stress on the pelvic area. These events can weaken a woman’s pelvic floor, and as a result, the bladder can move downward. Childbirth can also cause uterine prolapse, which is when the uterus descends into the vaginal canal. Everyday movements, such as sneezing, coughing and laughing, put stress on the bladder and may cause urine to leak.

To help strengthen the pelvic floor muscles, Dr. Menchaca suggests Kegel exercises. “Squeeze your pelvic floor 15 times for 15 seconds each, three times a day,” he says. “It should feel like you are stopping the flow of urine.”

Adventist Hinsdale and Adventist La Grange Memorial Hospitals offer women the latest procedures to treat uterine prolapse, which often causes urinary incontinence.

• The Tension-Free Vaginal Tape Sling (TVT) is a minimally invasive procedure aimed at giving women more bladder control. The surgery takes place inside the vagina where only a single incision is made under the urethra. The surgeon inserts a mesh-like sling that prevents incontinence during sudden movement. The procedure takes less than an hour, and patients can go home the same day and return to normal activities within two weeks.
• The Pinnacle^® pelvic floor repair kit uses reinforcement mesh to treat prolapse of the pelvic organs, including the bladder, uterus, vagina, small bowel and rectum. This minimally invasive procedure helps repair the pelvic floor on anyone, including those who have had a hysterectomy. Patients stay overnight and go home the next day.
• SILS^™ (single incision laparoscopic surgery) is used to perform hysterectomies, which helps women who experience incontinence caused by prolapses, uterine fibroids, endometriosis and abnormal bleeding. Because only one small incision, less than an inch long, is made in the belly button, patients experience less scarring and pain. Dr. Menchaca is one of only two Chicago-area physicians performing this procedure.

For many women, talking about their urinary incontinence is often the hardest part of dealing with their condition. “Talking to your doctor and getting diagnosed is the first step in finding relief,” says Dr. Menchaca. “With so many options, getting your life back can be a reality.”

Click here to learn about an urge and stress incontinence treatment program offered by Adventist Midwest Health though the Paulsen Rehab Network.