What is the Difference Between Urinary Retention and Urinary Incontinence

The key difference between urinary retention and urinary incontinence is that urinary retention is a medical condition in which people cannot empty all urine from their bladder, while urinary incontinence is a medical condition in which people leak urine by accident.

Urinary retention can almost be defined as the opposite of urinary incontinence. They are common urological conditions that are encountered in the emergency department of hospitals. Both of these medical conditions occur due to problems in the urinary bladder. Urinary retention makes it hard to expel urine, while urinary incontinence makes it hard to hold urine.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Urinary Retention 
3. What is Urinary Incontinence
4. Similarities – Urinary Retention and Urinary Incontinence
5. Urinary Retention vs Urinary Incontinence in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Urinary Retention vs Urinary Incontinence

What is Urinary Retention?

Urinary retention is a medical condition in which people cannot empty all urine from their bladder. It is generally divided into two types: acute urinary retention and chronic urinary retention. Acute urinary retention comes quickly, and it can be severe. It is an emergency condition, and people should immediately meet a healthcare provider. Chronic urinary retention means that people have had this condition for a longer period of time. Chronic urinary retention usually occurs in older men though it can also be seen in women.

The causes of urinary retention may include a blockage in the way urine leaves the body, medications taken for other conditions, nerve issues that interrupt how the brain and urinary system communicate, infections or swelling, and complications and side effects of medications given for a surgical procedure. The symptoms of acute urinary retention include a complete inability to pass urine, a painful urge to urinate, and pain or swelling in the lower abdomen. On the other hand, the symptoms of chronic urinary retention may include frequent urination, trouble starting urination, a weak urination stream, and a feeling of needing to urinate after passing urine.

Urinary retention can be diagnosed through medical history, physical examination, postvoid residual urine measurement, lab tests (urine test, blood test), imaging tests (ultrasound, voiding cystourethrogram, MRI, CT scan), urodynamic testing, and cystoscopy. Furthermore, treatments for urinary retention may include draining the bladder, medicines (5-alpha reductase inhibitors, alpha-blockers, antibiotics), other medical procedures and devices (cystoscopy, laser therapy, UroLift, transurethral electrovaporization, transurethral water vapour therapy, urethral dilation, vaginal pessary), and surgery.

What is Urinary Incontinence?

Urinary incontinence is a medical condition in which people leak urine by accident. It is most commonly occurring in older people. However, it is not an inevitable consequence of aging. The symptoms of urinary incontinence may include occasional minor leaks of urine, small to moderate amount of urine leaking frequently, urine leaks when pressing on the bladder, intense need to urinate followed by an involuntary loss of urine, and frequent dribbling of urine due to incomplete empty bladder. Temporary urinary incontinence can be caused due to certain drinks and foods (alcohol, caffeine, carbonated drinks, artificial sweeteners, chocolate, chili peppers, etc.), while persistent urinary incontinence can be caused due to physical problems or changes such as pregnancy, childbirth, changes with age, menopause, enlarged prostate, prostate cancer, obstruction, and neurological disorders (multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease).

Urinary incontinence can be diagnosed through physical examination, urinalysis, bladder diary, and postvoid residual measurement. Furthermore, the treatments for urinary incontinence are behavioural techniques (bladder training, double voiding, scheduled toilet trips, fluid and diet management), pelvic floor muscle exercise, medications (anticholinergics, mirabegron, alpha-blockers, topical estrogen), electrical stimulation, medical devices (urethral inserts, pessary), interventional therapies (bulking material injections, Botox, nerve stimulators), and surgeries (sling procedure, bladder neck suspension, prolapsed surgery, artificial urinary sphincter).

What are the Similarities Between Urinary Retention and Urinary Incontinence?

• Urinary retention and urinary incontinence occur due to problems in the urinary bladder.
• Urinary retention can almost be defined as the opposite of urinary incontinence.
• Both conditions are very common in older people.
• They are common urological conditions that are encountered in the emergency department of hospitals.
• They are treated through specific medication and surgeries.

What is the Difference Between Urinary Retention and Urinary Incontinence?

Urinary retention is a medical condition in which people cannot empty all urine from their bladder, while urinary incontinence is a medical condition in which people leak urine by accident. Thus, this is the key difference between urinary retention and urinary incontinence. Furthermore, urinary retention can be seen in both men and women equally. On the other hand, urinary incontinence can be seen more in women than men.

The below infographic presents the differences between urinary retention and urinary incontinence in tabular form for a side-by-side comparison.

Summary – Urinary Retention vs Urinary Incontinence

Urinary retention and urinary incontinence are two medical conditions that occur due to problems in the urinary bladder. Urinary retention can almost be defined as the opposite of urinary incontinence. In urinary retention, people cannot empty all urine from their bladder. On the other hand, in urinary incontinence, people leak urine by accident. So, this is the key difference between urinary retention and urinary incontinence.

Reference:

1. “Urinary Retention: Causes, Diagnosis & Treatment.” Cleveland Clinic.
2. “Urinary Incontinence.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Urinary retention” By Frivadossi – Own work (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Urinary Incontinence” By Scientific Animations (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia