Urinary Incontinence Treatment

Urinary Incontinence Treatment Dr. Travis: We have Karen here today and her doctor, Kia Michel, urologist from Comprehensive Urology Medical Group in Los Angeles, California. So, we get a lot of requests on www.producethedoctors.com about this issue. It’s embarrassing. It’s common and a lot of people are afraid to seek help. So I applaud you for coming here and sharing this because it’s so important. And the first thing I want to stress to folks is there are different types of incontinence, right? Dr. Michel: There are really two different subtypes of incontinence that we majorly see. One of them is stress incontinence and another one of them is urge incontinence and if you’d like, we can break them down. Stress incontinence is when a woman doesn’t have enough resistance so she coughs, laughs, does any sports, any activities. That extra pressure, then, causes her to leak. And then there’s also urge incontinence where a woman actually has frequency, urgency. She feels like she’s got to rush to the bathroom but before getting there, she actually leaks some urine. Dr. Travis: And that’s what you’re suffering from, correct? Karen: Yes, it is. Dr. Travis: So, this is a cool new treatment called the Urgent PC that you have been receiving. So walk us through what this treatment does for those with urge incontinence. Dr. Michel: So, if you take a look, most women who actually have urge incontinence will actually need to take medications for the rest of their life to help quiet down their bladder but now there’s a new technique whereby we can actually put a needle just directly into the ankle and send impulses up towards the spin at the same level that the nerves the bladder actually originate. So, the impulses are sent in directly to the bladder and then over time, the bladder starts to calm down and a woman’s frequency, urgency and urge incontinence actually starts to abate in about 7 out of every 10 women. And the beauty of that is that they don’t have to take medications for the rest of their lives. Dr. Travis: So, your symptoms, you’re urinating throughout the day, right? Karen: Yes, I was. Dr. Travis: So probably eight plus times a day—sometimes. Karen: Definitely at a whole lot more. Dr. Travis: Other symptoms? Karen: Well, that was it. Dr. Travis: The main one. Karen: And that was enough to keep me prisoner. Dr. Travis: And what I do like about this treatment is you’re getting the treatment as we speak up here on stage, right? Karen: I am. Dr. Travis: Do you feel anything? Karen: I have a little vibration at the bottom of my foot and that’s it. And believe it or not, it’s actually relaxing. It’s kind of a foot massage and if I had my way, I’d be reading the newspaper right now. Dr. Travis: Well, if you would, does anyone have a New York Times out there? So, how often do people need these treatments? Who’s it good for? Dr. Michel: That’s a very good question. A patient’s who actually have frequency, urgency or urge incontinence are wonderful candidates for this and a lot of women who also just don’t want to take medications in general prefer to actually go with this approach. So, women will come in once every 10 days to every 14 days. The session will last for about 30 minutes and it’s exactly as you see it. A lot of women are actually reading magazines, listening to iPods and just, truly, just relaxing, taking a little time away from their busy schedules and they just pick up when they leave and then come back again two weeks later and then they continue this. This treatment, actually, in modality, we offered for about 6 sessions and if we see that somebody has a very favorable response, then we’ll continue it. And after they have finished 12 sessions, in every few months, they just need a little reminder to just again, create that memory for their bladder and it really works very, very well. Dr. Travis: And your symptoms now? Karen: I’m much more resembling normal, resembling my friends. I’m no longer the one that’s different. I’m no longer prisoner to the bathroom. Dr. Travis: Well, that changed your life. Karen: Terrifically. Yes, in a great way. Dr. Travis: Great story. Thank you so much. Dr. Michel: Nice to meet you. My pleasure. Dr.Travis: So, if you’re suffering from incontinence, seek help. There are treatment options.