Overflow incontinence

Overflow incontinence
Other names	ischuria paradoxa
urinary bladder caused by urinary retention, a condition which often leads to overflow incontinence.
Specialty	Urology

Overflow incontinence is a concept of

Causes

Lesions affecting sacral segments or peripheral autonomic fibres result in atonic bladder with loss of sphincteric coordination. This results in loss of

The concept of overflow incontinence has been criticised, because it is difficult to define and because the definitions that have been proposed have little clinical significance. The concept is a purely theoretical one that is not based on evidence. Overflow incontinence cannot be measured and can therefore not be reliably diagnosed. In the urological literature and in medical care the concept is therefore of little importance, with the related concept of chronic urinary retention being the much more relevant and useful one.[1]

In 2017 the Quality Improvement and Patient Safety (QIPS) committee of the American Urological Association (AUA) published a definition of nonneurogenic chronic urinary retention as a post-void residual of greater than 300 mL that was measured at least twice and extended over a period at least six months. Measurement of post-void residual by medical ultrasound is an easy procedure that is sufficient in most cases.

Patients with this condition presenting additionally with

• Bladder sphincter dyssynergia
• Overactive bladder

References