According to a national survey by the University of Michigan in 2018, over half of women ages 65-80 reported experiencing urinary incontinence in the past year, and 31% dealt with urinary leakage daily. Urinary incontinence is a type of incontinence that older individuals may deal with, and if untreated, incontinence can cause other diseases or conditions.
Let’s talk about what incontinence is, what incontinence supply is, and where you can find incontinence supplies near you.
What Is Incontinence?
Incontinence refers to the inability to control urination or bowel movements, called urinary and fecal incontinence. Urinary and fecal incontinence can be caused by nerve damage, such as complications of diabetes, a spinal cord injury, or a stroke. When the nerves are damaged, it is difficult to sense feelings like needing to go to the bathroom due to a full bowel or bladder, so your body will release waste when it needs to, but you may not expect it because you cannot feel it.
Additionally, the changes with age can also cause incontinence, as muscles in your bladder and bowel weaken over time, so they cannot hold as much waste as they used to, and some may leak from time to time.
Incontinence affects men and women differently. In women, pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause can cause fecal and urinary incontinence and weaken muscles associated with bowel movements and urination. In men, prostate issues can cause urinary incontinence if it becomes enlarged and presses on the bladder.
What Is Incontinence Supply?
Often, people with incontinence cannot make it to the bathroom before they must go, or in the case of urinary incontinence, they may leak a steady stream of urine throughout the day, so they need solutions that can collect the waste throughout the day. Fortunately, there are many incontinences supply on the market that can address everyone’s unique needs.
The type of product you need depends on how much waste you lose throughout the day, whether you want a product that is reusable or disposable, how well it masks the odor, and how comfortable it is.
The following are some incontinence supplies that are good to have on hand to manage incontinence, organized from light leakage to heavy leakage:
- Absorbent pads worn in the underwear are designed for urine loss
- Underwear with waterproof lining
- Adult diapers/absorbent underwear
- Waterproof pants, worn with an adult diaper
- Devices that collect leakage (for men only), like drip collectors and condom catheters
- Devices that stop leakage, like pessaries and vaginal inserts (for women) and Cunningham clamps (for men)
- Underpads or absorbent pads that can be placed on a chair or under bedding
Incontinence Supply Near Me
If you need any of the incontinence supplies listed above, whether for yourself, a family member, or a patient, visit no other than Reliance Medical, Inc.
To schedule a consultation, contact or call us today at 325-692-7443 or click here to request more information. We are here to help you with any of your incontinence needs!
