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| All About Incontinence |
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SCREENING & DIAGNOSIS |
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The
first step in diagnosing urinary incontinence is to
see your doctor for a complete medical exam. |
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Your doctor will ask about your symptoms
and medical history. How often do you need to urinate?
When do you leak urine? Do you have trouble emptying
your bladder? Are you experiencing any symptoms in addition
to incontinence? Your answers to these questions will
help your doctor determine what type of incontinence
you have.
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A
complete physical examination, focusing on your abdomen
and genitals, also may give clues to your incontinence.
Your doctor will look for reasons for your incontinence,
such as a urinary tract infection, mass, hernia or compacted
stool. If the reason for your incontinence is harder
to find, your doctor may want to do some tests. |
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Common
tests
Common tests for urinary incontinence include: |
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Bladder
diary - Your doctor may go over a bladder diary
that he or she has asked you to complete at home
over several days. You simply record how much
you drink, when you urinate, the amount of urine
you produce, whether you had an urge to urinate
and the number of incontinence episodes. To measure
your urine, your doctor may give you a pan that
fits over your toilet rim. The pan has markings
like a measuring cup. |
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Urinalysis -
A sample of your urine is sent to a laboratory,
where it's checked for signs of infection, traces
of blood or other abnormalities. For the sample
to be collected, you're asked to urinate into
a container. A urine culture is a lab test that
specifically checks for signs of infection in
your urine. A urine cytology involves a check
of your urine for cancer cells. |
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Blood
test - Your doctor may have a sample of your
blood drawn and sent to a laboratory for analysis.
Your blood is checked for various chemicals and
substances related to causes of incontinence.
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