Bladder management
Bladder management
Spinal cord injury can affect our bladder control because messages no longer pass between the bladder muscles and the brain.
Feeling worried or embarrassed about this is natural. Still, the right support can help you gain as much control over your bladder as possible, which is important for our self-esteem and avoiding infections. Bladder management can look different from one person to the next because it depends on our individual needs, and there are several bladder management methods to suit those needs.
Knowing what is right for you begins with a journey of trying different approaches, a process healthcare professionals can support and guide you through. Getting this right is essential for both our self-esteem and health because poor bladder management can increase the risk of autonomic dysreflexia, poor kidney drainage, skin problems from incontinence and urinary tract infections.
Getting bladder management right for someone with a spinal cord injury is really important. Often, it’s a case of trial and error but there will be a right method for you. (Debbie Green, SIA spinal cord injury nurse specialist)
Bladder management methods include:
- Voiding with control: If you can pass urine, it is important to assess how well you are emptying your bladder
- Catheters: A catheter is a flexible tube that’s used to empty the bladder and collect urine in a drainage bag. It’s usually inserted into the bladder through the urethra, the tube that carries urine out of your body. Options are either intermittent catheters or indwelling catheters
- Contained incontinence: If you are unable to control your urine and wetting yourself using a Convene or pads, your bladder needs proper assessment to ensure this is safe and right for you
- Bladder botox. You might be familiar with botox as an anti-wrinkle treatment, but it can also be used to treat an overactive bladder. The injection paralyses part of the bladder muscle, allowing it to become more relaxed, so that you can hold on for longer before needing to empty your bladder.
There are many treatments options to control incontinence. A urological assessment is essential to identify the most appropriate.
Further information on bladder management, including the management of incontinence and urinary tract infections, can be found in our factsheet.
The NICE guideline on urinary incontinence in urological disease also provides very helpful guidance for patients and their healthcare providers.
Recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs) can be a big problem. NICE has also produced guidelines on recurrent and catheter associated urinary tract infections. Although these are not specific to patients with spinal cord injury, they provide useful guidance.
You are not alone
Bladder management can sometimes be difficult to talk about, but it becomes much easier when you realise you are not alone in experiencing such problems.
Our SCI nurse specialists are here for you. Get in touch with our clinical team here.
The Bladder & Bowel Community website also has plenty of information, stories of lived experience and support for all types of bladder and bowel problems.
If you’re looking for a service to deliver your bladder management products and medication straight to your door, SIA Healthcare can help. You’ll also get a free Radar key to access disabled toilets when you sign up.