Stress Incontinence

As defined by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, stress incontinence is "involuntary urine leakage on effort or exertion or on sneezing or coughing". It is sometimes referred to as exercise induced urine leakage, as it often happens when you exercise. There are certain high impact exercises, such as running, that are more likely to cause you to leak.

Stress incontinence is the most openly talked about form of incontinence, it is extremely common, effecting 200 million men and women worldwide. As many as 45% of women are reported to suffer from stress incontinence, with the true figure predicted to be much higher. Women are more likely to develop it after pregnancy and childbirth, and studies suggest your vulnerability increases considerably when you are over 30 years old, however, even young girls and men of all ages can develop stress incontinence.

There are many treatments available for stress incontinence, so it is important that you do not allow it to go untreated for longer than needed. Even though it is not life threatening, it can greatly reduce your quality of life as it develops into fully emptying your bladder each time it is put under pressure.

Symptoms of Stress Urinary Incontinence

You may be suffering from stress incontinence if you leak a small or large amount when you:

• giggle or laugh
• sneeze
• cough
• exercise
• crouch down / squat

If you leak only when you laugh, you may instead be suffering from giggle incontinence.

What can cause stress incontinence?

• Pregnancy – carrying your baby for nine months takes its toll on your pelvic floor muscles and the extra weight can make them weak. Hormones released during pregnancy can also make your pelvic floor muscles weaker.
• Childbirth – you can sustain nerve damage during childbirth. If you have a vaginal tear or episiotomy you are more likely to suffer from incontinence.
• Ageing and the menopause – hormone changes means the muscles, ligaments and fibres supporting your pelvic organs are not as ‘elastic’ as they once were.
• Overweight – if you are overweight you are TWICE as likely to suffer from stress incontinence. The extra weight is just too much pressure on your pelvic floor.
• Medication – some medication can contribute to stress incontinence. Statins help to relax your muscles – Woops there goes your pelvic floor again and leaks galore. Anti-depressants can also have the same affect.
• Smoking – as well as having a 3x higher chance of developing cancer of the bladder, the coughing plays havoc with your pelvic floor. Constant coughing makes your pelvic floor weak which means it will be unable to support your bladder properly resulting in more leaks.

What can you do about stress incontinence?

• Kegel Exercises – Kegels or pelvic floor exercises will help strengthen the muscles in your pelvic floor so they can continue to support your vital organs giving you greater control.
• Vaginal Pessary – A pessary device inserted into the vagina presses against the bladder neck and urethra so you have less leakage.
• Prescription Medications – Some drugs can treat stress incontinence. Anticholinergics can help to control bladder contractions. A tricyclic antidepressant may sometimes be prescribed to help relax the bladder muscle. Side effects from these drugs can include dry mouth, fatigue, and blurred vision. Some people may not be able to take these medications, however.
• Surgery – Various surgical operations are used to treat stress incontinence. They tend only to be used when pelvic floor muscle exercises have not helped and they aim to tighten or support the muscles and structures below the bladder.
• Tension-free Vaginal Tape (TVT) Procedure – This is a sling of synthetic (man-made) tape surgically implanted to support the urethra and bladder neck. However recent lawsuits in the US and mounting complaints about pain and tape erosion are concerning to say the least. Colposuspension is another operation to support the urethra and treat stress incontinence.

Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI) is a sign you need to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles and this is where a Kegel8 pelvic toner can help, even if you opt for surgery your weakness will still be there and other organs within your pelvic area are likely to prolapse!

Improve bowel control & strengthen the pelvic floor in just 12 weeks, with the help of the Kegel8 Ultra 20 & Amanda Savage!

Amanda Savage is one of the UK’s leading specialist pelvic floor and women’s health physiotherapists, who has worked in the field for over 20 years offering supervised pelvic floor muscle training and support for the recovery of pelvic organ prolapses, incontinence and pelvic surgeries. With post-graduate qualifications, including a master’s degree from the University of Cambridge, she has also gained full membership of the Professional Network of Pelvic, Obstetric & Gynaecological Physiotherapy (POGP). As a Kegel8 ambassador, Amanda Savage has worked alongside us for many years in the development of our best-selling device, the Kegel8 Ultra 20 V2 Electronic Pelvic Toner, to ensure its efficacy. In addition, she has been integral to ensuring all supporting information and instructions are medically accurate so that the device is used correctly/effectively, and treatment is tailored to the specific condition of the user.

Find out more about Amanda Savage, her qualifications, experience, knowledge, and affiliations here. 

Comes complete with an easy exercise plan, created by Amanda Savage, to get results in 12 weeks!

After surgery you will want to get back to your normal routine as soon as possible. However, gynaecological surgery can have an incredible impact on pelvic floor muscles, with many women often finding that they feel weak, unsupported, or de-conditioned in the weeks following their operation. Doing regular pelvic floor exercise sessions several times a day, straight away after your surgery, will help the healing process by improving blood circulation to the area, reducing swelling, and strengthening your muscles so they can support you. The next step is to build up good muscle strength and endurance again which you need for secure bladder and bowel control. Exercises will also improve the muscle tone which we need to prevent pelvic organ prolapse, to feel supported.

In the first 12 weeks after your surgery, you should perform pelvic floor exercises, but as the body is healing and sensations can be altered, it is not advised to use a muscle STIM device. Instead, perform your Kegels independently. However, after 12 weeks post-op, it is safe to use the Kegel8® Ultra 20 and follow the simple 12-week plan, which promises more effective pelvic floor exercise. The Kegel8 Ultra 20 V2 Electronic Pelvic Toner removes the guesswork and essentially acts as a Sat-Nav for your pelvic floor muscles, correctly targeting and stimulating a contraction within them using a small electric current. These contractions build strength and tone in a matter of weeks! With 20 clinically proven pelvic floor exercise programmes which vary in frequency, intensity and duration, the Ultra 20 is proven to treat a variety of different conditions and has been shown to be effective for rehabilitation post-surgery. And, in addition to tailored programmes, the specific 12-week exercise plans created by Amanda Savage advise exactly how the device should be used, depending upon the user’s specific requirements/condition, to ensure the very best treatment.

You’ll find an easy 12-week exercise plan created by Amanda Savage to aid pelvic floor rehabilitation post gynaecological surgery included with your Kegel8 Ultra 20. It utilises a unique combination of programmes to help the healing process by improving blood circulation to the area, reducing swelling, and strengthening your muscles so they can support you. It subsequently builds up good muscle strength and endurance again, which is needed for secure bladder and bowel control, and it will calm the ‘jumpy’ nerves responsible for a sensitive bladder. This plan will also improve the muscle tone which we need to prevent pelvic organ prolapse, to feel supported.

Sources

Al-Shaikh, G. Syed, S. Osman, S. Bogis, A. Al-Badr, A. (2018). International Journal of Women's Health. Pessary use in stress urinary incontinence: a review of advantages, complications, patient satisfaction, and quality of life. [online] 10(1), p195-201. [viewed 23/04/18]. Available from: https://www.dovepress.com/pessary-use-in-stress-urinary-incontinence-a-review-of-advantages-comp-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-IJWH

Dwyer, N. T. (2006). Urology Board Review Manual. Stress Urinary Incontinence in Women. Colposuspension for stress incontinence A Guide for Women

Khandelwal, C. Kistler, C. (2013). American Family Physician. Diagnosis of Urinary Incontinence. [online] 87(8), p543-550. [viewed 23/04/18] Available from: https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2013/0415/p543.html

Mota, R. L. (2017). International Brazilian Journal of Urology. Female urinary incontinence and sexuality. [online] 43(1), p20-28. [viewed 18/04/18]. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5293379/

NICE, (2013). Urinary incontinence in women: management. [online] National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2013. [viewed 18/04/18] Available from: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg171

NHS. (2017). Your pregnancy and baby guide: Episiotomy and perineal tears. [online] NHS Trust, 2017. [viewed 18/04/18] Available from: https://www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/labour-and-birth/what-happens/episiotomy-and-perineal-tears/