Overactive bladder is a sudden need to urinate immediately. OAB can be hard to control and can lead to incontinence, the involuntary release of urine. People living with OAB usually feel the need to urinate often. OAB is common in those 65 and older, although it can be diagnosed in women as young as 45.
It’s a fairly common condition worldwide, but the exact number of people living with OAB is unknown. This is due to shame around the condition as well as a lack of data from countries that do not have strong public health systems in place. Shame around living with OAB often causes people to isolate themselves instead of seeking the help they need. OAB won’t go away, but it can be treated when seeing a doctor.
Common symptoms of OAB include:
There is no one specific cause of OAB. In a healthy bladder, the muscles contract when it is full to release the urine into the urethra. The urethra carries urine out of the body. When living with a healthy bladder, the muscles of the bladder don’t contract until you’ve made it to the toilet.
If you’re living with OAB, the muscles of the bladder contract even when there isn’t a lot of fluid in the bladder. This leads to an urgent, frequent need to urinate and possibly the emptying of the bladder.
There is no one specific cause of OAB. Instead, there are many possible factors that contribute. These include:
Ageing is the biggest risk factor for developing OAB.
People experiencing OAB usually tell their doctor that their main symptom is the frequent urge to urinate. This can be a symptom of other conditions, so diagnosis of OAB will include tests that can rule other causes of frequent urination. In addition to a physical exam, including a focused pelvic exam in women and rectal exam in men, and a medical history, your doctor will run tests on your urine to check for the presence of an infection or blood. Either could be a sign of another problem. They may also do a bladder ultrasound after you urinate to check the ability of your bladder to empty.
Complications of OAB include:
Behavioural therapies are a popular, non-invasive option for treating OAB. They include doing pelvic floor exercises (also known as Kegels), maintaining a healthy weight, scheduling bathroom trips, wearing absorbent pads, and bladder training – waiting to urinate even when you feel the urge.
Medications, Botox injections, and nerve stimulation are other options that relax the bladder muscles. Surgery is considered a possibility when all other options have been exhausted. As a treatment for OAB, surgery can expand bladder capacity or remove the bladder entirely.