Overactive Bladder Syndrome

What is Overactive Bladder Syndrome?

You normally use the bathroom throughout the day. However, it is scary when you always want to be near a bathroom or are worried about leaking urine if you don’t go in time. Overactive Bladder or OAB syndrome affects your normal daily activities such as work, going out with friends, exercising, and sleeping.

An overactive bladder syndrome is a group of bladder symptoms that may include a feeling to pass urine urgently, the need to pass urine often (day and night), and urine leaks with the “gotta go” feeling. The OAB syndrome is very common and having any of these symptoms can make it hard to get through the day without going to the bathroom many times.

OAB syndrome is more common in women than in men. It is sometimes also referred to as detrusor instability or an irritable bladder.

What Causes Overactive Bladder Syndrome?

In the case of a healthy bladder, when your bladder filters the water and is full of urine waste, your brain signals the bladder. The signals from the brain cause the bladder muscles to squeeze forcing the urine out through the urethra. The urine flows out when the sphincter in the urethra opens. The bladder is relaxed when your bladder is not full.

For a healthy bladder, you can wait to go to the bathroom when the brain signals that your bladder is getting full or is full. OAB syndrome results from an early, uncontrolled contraction or spasms of the bladder or detrusor muscle, resulting in an urge to urinate. This problem of the nerves and muscles of the bladder causes early contraction during the normal relaxation phase of bladder filling. The contraction of the bladder in response to filling with urine is part of the normal process of urination. Our nervous system regulates the contraction and relaxation of the detrusor muscles.

Numerous situations may result in signs and symptoms of overactive bladder, including:

• Neurological disorders include stroke and multiple sclerosis.

• Diabetes.

• Urinary tract infections have symptoms similar to overactive bladder.

• Hormonal changes during menopause in women.

• Abnormalities in the bladder like tumors or bladder stones.

• Factors obstructing bladder outflow such as enlarged prostate, constipation, or previous operations to treat other forms of incontinence.

Some other factors may also result in symptoms including:

• Medications cause a rapid increase in urine production.

• Medications that require you to take lots of fluids with them.

• Excess consumption of caffeine or alcohol.

• Aging results in a decline in cognitive function that may impact the brain signals to reach the bladder.

• Difficulty walking causes bladder urgency as you're unable to get to the bathroom quickly.

• Incomplete bladder emptying causes symptoms of overactive bladder, as you have little urine storage space left.

Symptoms of Overactive Bladder Syndrome

Experiencing occasional incontinence is not always the symptom of an overactive bladder. Leakage of urine can be caused by other reasons, like laughing too hard or you’ve been fighting the urge to urinate for an extended time.

The doctor would confirm an overactive bladder if you have:

• Urgency: If you have a sudden urgent desire to pass urine and you are not able to put off going to the toilet. This is sometimes also referred to as latch key urgency.

• Frequency: You visit the toilet more often than normal - usually more than eight times a day. In severe cases, it may be more than eight times a day.

• Nocturia: You may wake up more than once at night to go to the toilet.

• Urge incontinence: This is a leaking of urine, sometimes in large amounts, before you can get to the toilet when you have a feeling of urgency.

Sometimes, even if you can get to the toilet in time as you sense an urge to urinate, unexpected frequent urination and nighttime urination can disrupt the quality of your life.