The pelvic floor muscles help control bladder and bowel function. If these muscles are weakened or damaged, incontinence can occur.

If bladder incontinence is due to weakening muscle problems or nerve issues, physical therapy may be a recommended treatment option. Physical therapy is typically prescribed in conjunction with other treatment options.

Biofeedback is a painless treatment method, providing personalized on-the-spot feedback about a particular function in the body. Biofeedback involves attaching sensors to the body and working with a physical therapist to learn mental and physical exercises to control muscles.

With bladder incontinence, biofeedback is often used if you have:

• Pelvic floor muscle dysfunction
• Urgency or frequent urination
• Difficulty emptying the bladder
• Pelvic pain

It may also be used prior to surgery to reduce the likelihood of developing such problems. Through the use of small sensors attached on the outside of the body, you will learn when to contract the anal sphincter muscles retraining them to be more effective. This form of behavioral therapy helps to establish and maintain control of bowel habits.

Biofeedback Therapy Near Nashville, TN

Take control of your bladder health with the power of biofeedback and physical therapy. If weakened or damaged pelvic floor muscles are causing bladder incontinence, physical therapy, including biofeedback, may be a recommended treatment option. Through painless and personalized feedback, biofeedback empowers you to learn mental and physical exercises, regaining control of your muscles.

If you’re suffering from stress incontinence, which is a form of urinary incontinence, conservative treatments often are not sufficient enough to eliminate the problem.

Bladder sling, also known as urethral sling surgery, treats urinary incontinence in both men and women. With a urethral sling treatment, a sling is connected to your abdominal wall to lift the urethra into its normal position. Pressure is then exerted on the urethra to assist with urine retention.

What is a Bladder Sling Made of?

The sling can be constructed using a variety of materials, including ligaments or muscle/tendon tissue removed from either your own body or an animal. The sling may also contain synthetics that eventually disintegrate.

When Would A Bladder Sling Be Right for Me?

Bladder slings are most commonly used to help patients who suffer from stress incontinence. However, it can also be used to help with occurrences of a sagging urethra or bladder neck, a history of previous failed surgeries, or complication factors that may result in failure of other surgeries.

What to Expect After Surgery

Urethral sling surgery can be safely performed in an outpatient surgery center. There is normally a 2-4 week recovery period, during which you should avoid doing too much activity to allow your body to properly heal.

It’s likely you will feel some pain and discomfort where your incision is and you may feel some cramping in your abdomen. Your doctor will prescribe you medication to help with the pain during the first few days after surgery. If you continue to experience pain, be sure to contact your doctor immediately.

How Well Does a Urethral Sling Work?

According to the American Urological Association, approximately 8 out of 10 women are cured of urinary incontinence after this surgery.

Are There Any Risks?

Like with any type of invasive surgery, there are risks.  Complications of a urethral sling procedure may include:

• Trouble urinating after surgery
• New symptoms of urgency or urge incontinence
• Pelvic organ prolapse

Bladder Sling Treatment in Middle Tennessee

If you suffer from stress incontinence or another common reason for a bladder sling, contact us today to see how we can help you. Our doctors, located in Nashville and Franklin, TN, are experts in treatments for bladder incontinence and would love to help you get back to a normal lifestyle.

Contact us today, here, or give us a call at 615-547-2938 to talk to one of our specialists!

In the 1980s, Botox® was developed and approved by the FDA for the treatment of certain eye muscle disorders. Shortly thereafter, Botox gained acclaim as a cosmetic product to treat wrinkles. Since the late 1990s, it has been used to treat disorders of the bladder, primarily overactive bladder. Doctors typically try to treat incontinence with medication before using Botox, but Botox is an extremely effective treatment for bladder leakage.

How Botox for Bladder Control Works

Botox relieves symptoms of urge incontinence by calming the nerves that overstimulate your bladder. It relaxes bladder muscles, allowing the bladder to store larger volumes of urine and reducing overactive bladder episodes. The benefits last from 6-12 months, and the procedure can be repeated if successful. A major study found that men and women given Botox used the bathroom 1 to 2 time less often after treatment.

Botox Injections Procedure for Incontinence

To treat incontinence, Botox is injected into the bladder muscle using a specialized instrument called a cystoscope that allows the physician to look at the bladder’s inner lining. The procedure takes 15 minutes or less, requires no incisions, and can be performed under general or local anesthesia on an outpatient basis. There are few or no restrictions following the procedure – you can return to work and regular activities immediately. It may take two weeks to see any results from the Botox procedure, but a recent study found that four in ten women became completely continent after six weeks and remained continent up to 6 months after the procedure.

Women who are currently pregnant cannot have Botox treatment for incontinence, but Botox is an alternative to surgical treatments for women who plan to become pregnant. Surgical treatments such as the bladder sling are not recommended for women who are planning to have  children because pregnancy reverses the positive effects. Botox treatment however, can be used safely in between pregnancies.

Side Effects of Botox for Urinary Incontinence

Like any medical procedure, there are some side effects of using Botox to treat bladder leakage. After treatment, there is a greater risk of urinary tract infections and urinary retention. Patients are advised to wait at least 12 weeks between treatments to reduce the chance of side effects.

Botox Treatment in Middle Tennessee

Don’t let yourself or a loved one suffer with urinary incontinence without treatment. Schedule an appointment at the Incontinence Institute today by using the contact form or calling our discrete, medical concierge.

If you suffer from urinary incontinence, there are a number of urinary treatment options available today that can help you return to a normal lifestyle. Depending on the cause of your incontinence, there are surgery and drug options available, but there are also non-invasive treatments and lifestyle changes that are proven to work just as effectively. It’s typical to see that a combination of treatments may be needed to fully treat your bladder incontinence.

The urinary incontinence doctors with the Incontinence Institute offer a variety of treatment options designed to help you start living a better life. Explore all of the incontinence care options that we offer below and click on the links for more details.

• Botox
  Injected into the bladder muscle by a specialized instrument called a cystoscope. The procedure takes 15 minutes or less and can be done under a general anesthesia, or on an outpatient basis so you don’t have to be admitted to a hospital.
• InterStim®
  Designed to help you improve bladder control, an InterStim implant is a small device that is placed using a minimally invasive procedure that typically lasts about one hour.
• Medication
  Medication for urinary incontinence treatment can include oral medications, patches, or creams. Common medications that a doctor will prescribe include Anticholinergics, Estrogen, Imipramine, and Desmopressin.Our doctors will pinpoint the source of your urinary incontinence to better understand your condition and prescribe the most effective medication for you.
• Physical Therapy & Biofeedback
  Generally used alongside other treatment options, physical therapy is a painless treatment method that can help strengthen weak muscles and damaged nerves that are causing incontinence.Biofeedback, also a painless treatment method, allows you to receive on-the-spot feedback about a specific function in your body. Biofeedback is often used if you have pelvic floor muscle dysfunction, urgency or frequent urination, difficulty emptying the bladder, or pelvic pain.
• Urethral Sling
  Typically used to treat stress incontinence, bladder slings/urethral slings treat urinary incontinence in both men and women. Urethral sling surgeries are designed to treat urinary incontinence by placing a sling around the urethra to lift it back into a normal position and to apply pressure on the urethra to assist with urine retention.

Get In Touch With Our Urinary Incontinence Specialists Today

To find out what treatment option is best for your urinary incontinence, come visit one our of bladder incontinence doctors. We have locations in Franklin and Nashville, TN. Contact us online or give us a call at 615-547-2938 to speak to one of our specialists today.