Someone who has an overactive bladder is likely to experience a number of key symptoms. The presence of these symptoms can lead to an adult overactive bladder diagnosis. The symptoms include:
– Feeling an uncontrollable sudden urge to urinate
– Having urge incontinence
– Urinating at least eight times in every 24 hour period
– Having nocturia, which means you wake up for the toilet at least twice every night
Adult Overactive Bladder Diagnosis:
In order to receive an adult overactive bladder diagnosis, you will need to see your physician. Elderly people often assume they have it, when they are actually becoming incontinent. For many, it feels embarrassing to speak to a physician about such a personal issue, but it is important that you do so regardless. This is also due to the fact that an overactive bladder can be managed in a variety of different ways, thereby ensuring you do not experience a reduced quality of life.
When you go to your physician, he or she will likely:
– Discuss your medical history
– Perform a physical examination around your genitals and abdomen
– Take a urine sample to rule out infections and abnormalities
– Complete a neurological examination to determine whether you have abnormal reflexes or a sensory issue
Special Diagnostics Tests:
You may also be requested to undergo a urodynamic test. This helps to determine whether your bladder is functioning properly, and whether it can empty completely and steadily. You will need a specialized referral for this, and a range of specific tests are likely to be completed, including:
1. Measuring how much urine remains in your bladder. This can identify post-void residential urine, which presents in the same way as an overactive bladder but is actually a different condition. To measure this, an ultrasound scan is likely to be performed on your bladder, or you will be fitted with a catheter to drain the remains of the bladder and measure it.
2. Measuring the flow rate of your urine. To do this, you will need to urinate into a device called the "uroflowmeter". This creates a graph of the various changes in your flow rate.
3. Testing the pressure of your bladder through cystometry, which also looks at the pressure in the space taken up by the bladder when it is full. You will be fitted with a catheter and your bladder will slowly be filled using warm water. A second catheter will be fitted inside a woman's vagina or a man's rectum to measure the pressure. Through this test, a physician can determine whether your bladder is stiff, or whether you have involuntary contractions. During the study, you will likely also complete a pressure flow study, which can help determine whether an obstruction is present as well. Obstructions from a prolapse in a woman's pelvic organ, or from a man's enlarged prostate, may also cause an overactive bladder. Usually, however, the bladder pressure test is only performed on people who also have a neurological condition that specifically impacts the spinal cord.
The test results will be reviewed by a physician, who will then also suggest a treatment plan.