Women often do not tell their doctors about their urinary symptoms.  These women may not consider leakage to be a problem or rely on absorbent pads or changes in lifestyle to deal with the problem.  Others may feel ashamed or depressed or may avoid social or work events.  Others have the false belief that loss of bladder control is a normal part of aging.  They think that nothing can be done to correct it, but often it can be treated. 

There are five types of urinary incontinence, stress, urge, mixed, overflow and functional.  Stress incontinence occurs when the pressure in the bladder is greater than the pressure in the urethra.  This causes a loss of urine when a woman coughs, laughs, or sneezes.  It can also leak when a woman walks, runs, or does aerobics.  It is caused when the tissues of the urethra get weak.

With urge incontinence, a woman has a sudden strong urge to void and leaks urine before she can get to the bathroom.  It is sometimes referred to as overactive bladder. 

Mixed incontinence occurs when a woman has both stress and urge symptoms.  This combination may cause more urine to leak than either type alone.

Overflow incontinence occurs when the bladder does not empty all the way during voiding.  It happens when the bladder muscle is not active enough or when the urethra is blocked.  This allows for steady leaks of small amounts of urine.

Knowing the cause helps your doctor suggest the best treatment for you.  Treatments can range from exercises (Kegels), devices (pessary), medications, physical therapy and surgery.  Testing through the cystometrogram is the first step in finding the treatment that works best for you. 

Surgery is sometimes suggested if the problem relates to pelvic organ prolapse often caused by pregnancy and childbirth.