Types of Incontinence

What are the Different Types of Incontinence?

There are several types of incontinence. The first distinction is between urinary incontinence and bowel or fecal incontinence. In addition, there are specific types of incontinence, which are discussed below.

Stress Incontinence

Surprisingly, stress incontinence has little to do with mental pressure. Rather, stress incontinence refers to the leaking of urine due to coughing, laughing, sneezing or other causes that put pressure on the bladder.^[3] It is the most common type of incontinence among women under age 75 and it may start during menopause.^[1][4] This type of incontinence can be caused by weakening of pelvic muscles during childbirth or surgery.^[5] It is treatable and may be curable in some cases.^[3][6] Symptoms range from mild leaking to uncontrollable wetting.^[7]

Urge Incontinence

Urge incontinence, also called overactive bladder, is the most common type of incontinence.^[8] As the name suggests, this type of the disorder occurs when someone suddenly feels the need to urinate. Often, they are unable to reach the bathroom in time. The problem may occur when sleeping, after drinking a small amount of water, touching water or upon hearing running water such as a shower.^[3] Some diseases may cause urge incontinence such as multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and stroke.

Overflow Incontinence

Overflow incontinence occurs when the bladder doesn't empty properly so that its contents leak.^[3] This type of incontinence is rare in women. It happens due to weak bladder muscles or a blocked urethra (the tube that connects the bladder to the outside of the body). It can be caused by nerve damage from diabetes or other diseases. It may also be caused by tumors and urinary stones, so it is important to see your doctor whenever you have this condition.

Emotional, Psychogenic or Functional Incontinence

Emotional or psychogenic incontinence, also known as functional incontinence, occurs from the inability (or in some cases the unwillingness) to get to a toilet.^[9] This form of incontinence can occur in people with normal bladder function but who are unable to get to a bathroom on time.^[10] This results from conditions that cause immobility such as severe arthritis or stroke and disease that interfere with mental function such as dementia or Alzheimer's disease. In some situations, a person may become depressed or may have another emotional disturbance that prevents them from getting to the bathroom. This type of incontinence is unusual and should be diagnosed by ruling out other possibilities.^[8]

Total Incontinence

Total incontinence is the continuous and total loss of urinary control. This results in a person being continuously wet.^[11] This type of incontinence may be due to damage to nerves that control the bladder, surgery, childbirth or pelvic disease. Nerve damage may occur from spinal deformities such as spina bifida, scoliosis, spinal cord damage, multiple sclerosis or Lou Gehrig's disease. In addition, surgery for some pelvic conditions, accidents, and radiation treatment may cause total incontinence. Men may develop total incontinence from surgery to remove the prostate.

Mixed Incontinence

Mixed incontinence is a combination of more than one type of incontinence.^[9] The most common form occurs in older women and involves a combination of urge and stress incontinence. In addition, the elderly may have both urge and functional incontinence.