Could My Medications Be Causing My Bladder Control Problems?

Could It Be Your Medicine Causing Your Bladder Control Problems?

I have some good news and some bad news. First with the bad news: your medicines might be causing your bladder control problems, or a condition that physicians refer to as incontinence. I did not say they were causing it, I said they could cause it. Stay with me now as I am going to try to make this article as interesting as possible. The real purpose of this article is to arm you with information so that you can question your physician. The doctor will tell you if your medicine is the cause of your symptoms. In no way is this article meant to give you an excuse to stop your medications. Again, medications could be causing the problem of incontinence, but stopping them without the doctor's orders could cause a much bigger problem than bladder control.

As long as we are clear on that point, here is what I found in my research regarding which medications could cause the incontinence.

• Medications that are prescribed for pain, such as narcotics, can impair the ability to empty the bladder.

• Alpha Blockers could cause the urethral muscles to relax and could cause or worsen incontinence.

• Diuretic drugs that cause rapid production of urine could result in urine leakage, should the urethral muscles be loosened by an Alpha Blocker.

• Anti-Hypertension medicines may also cause incontinence.

• Medicines such as prazosin, terazosin, doxazosin, alpha-methyldopa and reserpine could all cause relaxation of the urethral muscle.

• Anti-seizure medicines such as thioridazine, chloropromazine, haloperidol, and clozapine may cause leaks at night.

• Valium, Zanex, and Klonopin can also weaken muscles that allow leakage to take place.

• Medicines that could cause the bladder to not fully empty are hyoscyamine, benztropine, trihexphenidyl,
pindolol and disopyramide.

• Most medications that cause a chronic cough could cause bladder problems as well. Some of those medications are vaseretic, vasotec, lotensin, monopril and Zestril.

It is very important that you understand what I am going to say now. Do not stop taking any of these medications if you are experiencing bladder control problems without consulting your physician. Once again, my goal was to provide you with information that could help you if you are experiencing incontinence; information that you can take to your doctor for clarification.

Now for the good news: if you are experiencing bladder control problems, there are medications that can help you. So the answer is not to stop taking those medications that have been prescribed to you by your physician. Consult your physician to see what your solution is. Only your physician will know what will work best for you in your particular situation. Keep in mind that many bladder control problems can be helped through a simple routine known as Kegel exercises. However, don't self examine yourself and think Kegels are the answer to your problem. Exercise the rest of your body daily as well, and you will look and feel better.