Leaking urine is no laughing matter.
Considering that for some people this annoying problem doesn’t just occur when laughing but also when coughing sneezing jogging or even jumping on the trampoline. After menopause nearly 50% of all women will experience some intermittent urine leak, but that’s no consolation for a 32 year old lady needing to wear a pad every day for life.
It wasn’t always this way. She remembers when this wasn’t a problem for her body. Many of my patients can relate their troubles starting after the delivery of an 8 pound baby or going through menopause.
One would think a problem so common and so troublesome would be easy to bring up with their personal physician but apparently it’s not. Stigma, short appointment times, fear of an exam all can lead to suffering in silence for years.
Traditional treatments have mixed reviews.
The most common advice , to perform Kegel exercises take months to master and often times are performed incorrectly with no result. But for others with mild incontinence Kegels are helpful. There also are medicines that relax the bladder, but Not everyone can tolerate them due to side effects like dry mouth and dry eyes. And many people prefer not to have surgical interventions like the “urethral sling” or mesh.
But there is good news.
Recent medical advances may be changing lives here in Northern Colorado soon. Intravaginal muscle stimulation devices are now FDA approved for outpatient use. This Technology from Israeli manufacturer InMode can perform 1000s of Kegel exercises in under 30 minutes right in your doctors office with lasting improvement in as little as 6 weeks. Also recently FDA approved is intravaginal Microneedling that stimulates collagen contraction and lasting reduction in laxity.
Don’t suffer in silence. research these news medical offerings
To see if they are right for you or perhaps “a friend.”
-John Bender, MD, MBA, FAAFP, is CEO of Miramont Wellness Centers, Fort Collins
Learn more about EmpowerRF at Miramont MedSpa
