STRESS INCONTINENCE

Stress incontinence occurs most commonly in women who have had many pregnancies or who are in menopause. The patient loses control of the bladder when he or she coughs, laughs, or sneezes and consequently leaks small amounts of urine. Nocturia is rare in stress incontinence. There is often an associated cystocele. In postmenopausal women, there is often an atrophic vaginitis due to the deficiency of estrogen. Men occasionally develop stress incontinence following a prostatectomy.

DIAGNOSTIC WORKUP

In most cases, the diagnosis will be obvious. You can ask the patient to cough during a vaginal examination, and the urine will trickle out. If that does not establish the diagnosis, have the patient drink a lot of water and not void until he or she returns to the office. Then you can have him or her cough in the recumbent or erect position, and the urine will be released. This is called the stress test. In the Q-tip test, a Q-tip is inserted in the tip of the urethra, and the patient is asked to cough or strain. The Q-tip will move at least 30 degrees above the horizontal in cases of stress incontinence. For further discussion of incontinence, see page 264 .

Book Source Details

• Book Title: Algorithmic Diagnosis of Symptoms and Signs
• Author(s): R. Douglas Collins
• Year of Publication: 2003
• Copyright Details: Algorithmic Diagnosis of Symptoms and Signs, Copyright © 2003 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Other Book Chapters Related to Urinary incontinence

Read excerpts from these other book chapters related to Urinary incontinence:

Copyright Details: Algorithmic Diagnosis of Symptoms and Signs, Copyright © 2008 Williams & Wilkins.

More About Causes of Urinary incontinence

• Back to symptom: Urinary incontinence: Introduction (review 236 causes)
• Next Book Extract About Urinary incontinence: URETHRAL DISCHARGE (Algorithmic Diagnosis of Symptoms and Signs)
• All Book Extracts: All Online Book Extracts for Urinary incontinence

More About This Book: Title: Algorithmic Diagnosis of Symptoms and Signs Authors: R. Douglas Collins Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Copyright: 2003 ISBN: 0-7817-3805-9

 » Next page: URETHRAL DISCHARGE (Algorithmic Diagnosis of Symptoms and Signs)

Rate This Website

What do you think about the features of this website? Take our user survey and have your say:

Website User Survey

Medical Tools & Articles:

Next articles:

• URETHRAL DISCHARGE (Algorithmic Diagnosis of Symptoms and Signs)
• INCONTINENCE OF FECES (Algorithmic Diagnosis of Symptoms and Signs)
• Incontinence (In a Page: Signs and Symptoms)
• Polyuria (In a Page: Signs and Symptoms)
• Enuresis (In A Page: Pediatric Signs and Symptoms)

Tools & Services:

• Bookmark this page
• Related medical articles for Urinary Incontinence:
• Take a survey relating to Urinary incontinence
• Symptom Search
• Symptom Checker
• Medical Dictionary
• Give your feedback

Medical Articles:

• Disease & Treatments Search
• Misdiagnosis Center
• Full list of interesting articles

Forums & Message Boards

• Ask or answer a question at the Boards:
• I cannot get a diagnosis. Please help.
• Tell us your medical story.
• Share your misdiagnosis story.
• What is the best treatment for my condition?
• See all the Boards.

Enter your search terms Submit search form
Search The Web Search wrongdiagnosis.com

Common Health Mistakes

Symptom
Checker

Search Specialists by State and City