Overview. Overactive bladder, also called OAB, causes a frequent and sudden urge to urinate that may be difficult to control. You may feel like you need to pass urine many times during the day and night, and may also experience unintentional loss of urine (urgency incontinence).
Overactive bladder (OAB) is a syndrome characterized by urinary urgency, with or without incontinence, nocturia, and urinary frequency.
What's normal and how many times is too frequent to urinate? Most people pee about seven to eight times per day, on average. If you feel the need to pee much more than that, or if you're getting up every hour or 30 minutes to go, you might be frequently urinating.
Urodynamic tests include: Measuring urine left in the bladder. This test is important if there's concern about your ability to empty your bladder completely when you urinate. Remaining urine in the bladder (post-void residual urine) may cause symptoms identical to those of an overactive bladder.
Urinate frequently, usually eight or more times in 24 hours. Wake up more than two times in the night to urinate (nocturia)
Overactive bladder and IC can present with similar symptoms, such as urinary urgency, frequency, and nocturia. Urge urinary incontinence is a common feature of OAB, whereas pelvic pain is typically associated with IC.
You may pass urine more often than usual because of: Infection, disease, injury or irritation of the bladder. A condition that causes your body to make more urine. Changes in muscles, nerves or other tissues that affect how the bladder works.
You have an overactive bladder.
This allows your bladder to contract and push urine out. If you have overactive bladder, the muscles in the bladder involuntarily contract, even when it's not full. “Some women even leak urine after this sudden urge,” Dr. Dune says.
Check in with your health care provider if: There's no obvious reason for your frequent urination, such as drinking more total fluids, alcohol or caffeine. The problem disrupts your sleep or everyday activities. You have other urinary problems or symptoms that worry you.
Red-flag symptoms/signs
Urethral/bladder pain. Recurrent urinary tract infection. Difficulty with bladder emptying. Constant leak suspicious for a urogenital fistula.
Overactive bladder is caused by a malfunction of the detrusor muscle, which in turn can be cased by: Nerve damage caused by abdominal trauma, pelvic trauma or surgery. Bladder stones. Drug side effects.
Treatment for Overactive Bladder
Our urologists treat patients with OAB with combinations of behavioral therapy, medication, and in severe cases, a therapy called Interstim, to treat overactive bladder. Another option is the injection of Botox into the bladder to relax and paralyze the overactive muscle.
Drinking too much fluid during the evening can cause you to urinate more often during the night. Caffeine and alcohol after dinner can also lead to this problem. Other common causes of urination at night include: Infection of the bladder or urinary tract.
Most people need to pass urine about six to seven times in a 24-hour period. Peeing more than seven times a day when drinking about 2 liters of fluid is considered urinary frequency. Needing to pee 20 times a day would be considered frequent urination.
Typically, you should be able to sleep six to eight hours during the night without having to get up to go to the bathroom. But, people who have nocturia wake up more than once a night to pee. This can cause disruptions in your normal sleep cycle, and leave you tired and with less energy during the day.
Frequent urination, when you need to go to the toilet more than usual during 24 hours is a common symptom of anxiety disorder.
Overactive bladder (OAB) is a common cause of urinary frequency. Having a pelvic floor problem can be a risk factor for OAB. OAB leads to bladder spasms, meaning the bladder contracts when it shouldn't. This causes increased urination and, sometimes, urinary incontinence.
UTIs happen when bacteria or something else infects parts of your urinary system, which includes your bladder, urethra and kidneys. Besides frequent urination, signs of a UTI include fever, a burning feeling when you pee, discolored urine and constantly feeling like you need to pee (even after peeing).
Feeling as if you need to pee right after you pee is a symptom of a urinary tract infection. It could also happen if you consume bladder irritants like alcohol, coffee, or chocolate. Frequent urination can also be a symptom of conditions like interstitial cystitis or pelvic issues.
Overactive bladder is a condition in which the bladder squeezes urine out at the wrong time. You may have overactive bladder if you have two or more of these symptoms: You urinate eight or more times a day or two or more times at night. You have the sudden, strong need to urinate immediately.
More often than not, OAB is a chronic condition; it can get better, but it may not ever go away completely. To start with, doctors often recommend exercises such as Kegels to strengthen pelvic floor muscles and give you more control over your urine flow.
Purpose: Overactive bladder imposes a significant socioeconomic burden on the health care system. It is a commonly held belief that increased fluid intake (8 glasses of water per day) is beneficial for health. However, increased fluid intake exacerbates overactive bladder symptoms.