Surgery
If other treatments aren't working, several surgical procedures have been developed to fix problems that cause urinary incontinence.
Some of the more common procedures include:
- Artificial urinary sphincter
This small device is particularly helpful for men who have weakened urinary sphincters from treatment of prostate cancer or an enlarged prostate gland. Shaped like a doughnut, the device is implanted around the neck of your bladder. The fluid-filled ring keeps your urinary sphincter shut tight until you're ready to urinate. To urinate, you press a valve implanted under your skin that causes the ring to deflate and allows urine from your bladder to flow. - Sling procedures
A sling procedure uses strips of your body's tissue, synthetic material or mesh to create a pelvic sling or hammock around your bladder neck and urethra. The sling helps keep the urethra closed, especially when you cough or sneeze. There are many types of slings, including tension-free, adjustable and conventional. - Bladder neck suspension
This procedure is designed to provide support to your urethra and bladder neck — an area of thickened muscle where the bladder connects to the urethra. It involves an abdominal incision, so it's done under general or spinal anesthesia. The procedure usually takes about an hour, and recovery takes about six weeks.
