Bladder Problems

What Are The Most Common Causes Of Bladder Problems?

Bladder problems are not just a concern of the elderly, as many people assume. Bladder problems come in many forms. There are conditions and disorders that strike old, young, and middle aged persons.

To understand bladder problems, it helps to understand the role and functions of the human bladder.

The bladder is the "storage depot" for urine processed by the kidneys before it is excreted from the body through urination. The bladder is a hollow muscle that is capable of stretching as it fills. It is located in the area of the human body known as the pelvic floor in the lower part of the abdomen. The bladder is lined with waterproof skin which is called transitional cell epithelium.

The kidneys filter liquid waste from the blood stream in the form of urine. This urine passes down hollow tubes known as ureters and into the bladder. As the bladder fills, we feel the need to urinate to relieve the growing pressure. Urine then passes through a tube called the urethra and out of the body.

In most people, the bladder can hold as much as a liter of urine (about 20 ounces). However, most people begin to feel a need to empty the bladder when it is 25-40 percent full.

When it is partially full, the bladder is approximately five inches long and three inches wide.

Causes Of Common Bladder Problems There are a number of common bladder problem causes.

Many people find themselves losing bladder control as they reach an advanced age. This bladder problem is known as incontinence. But the elderly are not the only ones who suffer incontinence. It can also be caused by certain diseases or disorders that strike at any age.

Among the most common bladder problems causes is a condition called overactive bladder. Overactive bladder occurs when there's a sudden, involuntary contraction of the muscle in the walls of the bladder. When this happens, you'll feel an urgent need to urinate. This feeling is generally called urinary urge incontinence. Overactive bladder is the most common cause of urge incontinence. Urge incontinence can be annoying, inconvenient, uncomfortable and sometimes even embarrassing, but it is not usually a direct threat to overall health.

Nonetheless, we have an article that details options for bladder control treatments.

The most serious of all bladder problems is bladder cancer. There are several different kinds of bladder cancer, and these are covered elsewhere on this website. More than 70,000 new cases of bladder cancer are diagnosed each year in the United States alone. It is the fourth most common type of cancer in men and the eighth most common in women.

In addition to the bladder problems mentioned above, there are a number of others that we'll cover in separate articles, including bladder pain and pressure, bladder stones, bladder spasms, and a condition called bladder prolapse or fallen bladder.

We also have a separate article dedicated to listing common bladder sympstoms categorized by condition.

A doctor who specializes in bladder problems and other disorders of the urinary tract is known as a urologist.

Bibliography and Resources

Cure Urinary Incontinence Naturally by Grace Emerson 

Johns Hopkins Patients' Guide to Bladder Cancer (Johns Hopkins Medicine)  

National Kidney and Urological Diseases Information Clearinghouse

The American Urological Association

UrologyHealth.org

The Kidney and Urology Foundation of America
 

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