Incontinence Specialist

What causes incontinence?

Typically, incontinence is either stress incontinence, which occurs when a person sneezes, laughs, coughs, or otherwise puts pressure on the bladder that allows urine to escape, or urge incontinence, which occurs when a person has a strong urge to pass urine, even if the bladder isn’t full. Stress incontinence is the more common form of the condition in women. Stress incontinence is caused by childbirth, weight gain, or other issues that cause the pelvic floor muscles to stretch and not provide adequate support to the bladder. Urge incontinence is caused by an overactive bladder muscle responsible for pushing urine out of the body.

How’s incontinence treated?

Dr. Patterson offers a variety of treatments for incontinence that range from bladder training and lifestyle changes to medicines, medical devices, or physical therapy. He performs a thorough examination to determine the cause of the patient’s incontinence and makes a recommendation for the treatment he believes is most effective to help the patient to get back to normal activities. If behavioral treatments like timed urination and Kegel exercises are not effective, Dr. Patterson may suggest medicines like imipramine or an estrogen cream or gel to help tighten or strengthen the pelvic floor. He may also suggest using a pessary or estrogen ring. In some cases, pelvic mesh may be inserted to support the pelvic floor. Dr. Patterson typically tries other forms of treatment before using a surgical procedure to treat incontinence. He often uses pelvic floor physical therapy to help his patients with incontinence.

What is pelvic floor physical therapy?

Pelvic floor physical therapy is a combination of treatments and exercises that can help to strengthen, lengthen, and often relax the muscles. This helps the pelvic floor muscles to function properly and provide sufficient support to the bladder and other pelvic organs, preventing incontinence and other conditions, such as prolapse. Dr. Patterson has had specialized training to deliver pelvic floor physical therapy and may use techniques like skin rolling, deep tissue or trigger point release massage, nerve release, and joint mobilization. Many patients experience improvement following pelvic floor physical therapy. Dr. Patterson can determine whether pelvic floor physical therapy is an appropriate treatment for his patients suffering from incontinence.