Many men experience a variety of problems with their urinary system leading to unwanted leakage of urine. Some also have difficulty controlling wind or leakage from the lower bowel, often due to weakness of the muscles of the pelvic floor which have an important function in preventing these problems.
The pelvic floor can be weakened by repeated straining to empty your bowels, repeated heavy lifting, a chronic cough, being overweight, and after some operations for prostate disease. After a radical prostatectomy (an operation to remove the prostate gland ) stress incontinence is the most common urinary side effect. During surgery most of the urinary sphincter is removed, which can result in incontinence.
Physiotherapy can help improve control of your bladder and bowel by doing exercises to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles. These exercises may also be useful in conjunction with a bladder retraining programme aimed at improving bladder control in people who experience the urgent need to pass urine frequently and may not always “make it in time”.
A visit to Simon Rowan, chartered physiotherapist, will start with a thorough assessment of your problem. Treatment will focus on pelvic floor muscle exercise, bladder retraining, and advice on lifestyle modification. Simon Rowan can be contacted on (087 ) 9822420.
