Detrusor instability is common in men with evidence of outflow obstruction due to benign prostatic hypertrophy and typically reverses in about two thirds of patients after transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP). It is also common among the elderly without outflow obstruction and may lead to urge incontinence. To determine whether TURP has an effect on detrusor instability and urge incontinence in elderly men, or whether these abnormalities are due to other age-associated changes, 12 males (mean age 80 years) with urge incontinence or frequency and urgency of micturition, and symptomatic benign prostatic hypertrophy, were studied by 24-hour monitoring of incontinence and videourodynamic examination, before and after TURP; 7/12 patients were significantly cognitively impaired. Preoperatively, all patients showed detrusor instability, which reversed postoperatively in only one patient, a significantly smaller proportion than that consistently reported in younger patients. Preoperatively, 11/12 patients were incontinent. After TURP, 8/11 patients had an improvement in the amount of incontinence, by up to 458 g in 24 hours. Those who improved had been urodynamically more severely obstructed preoperatively. Those with the most improvement were also cognitively impaired. We conclude that, in the geriatric population, detrusor instability and urge incontinence may be the result of age-associated changes and not secondary to obstruction. Detrusor instability is likely to persist following TURP. Preoperative urodynamic assessment of obstruction in the incontinent male with benign prostatic hypertrophy may be useful since the severity of incontinence responds well to TURP if there is marked obstruction. Cognitive impairment should not be a deterrent to operation.
We have examined 73 elderly incontinent patients (mean age 79 years) and 27 continent subjects (mean age 78 years) of similar cognitive status. Among the incontinent patients, 20 were shown objectively to have urge incontinence with normal bladder filling sensation, 14 had objectively demonstrated urge incontinence with reduced bladder sensation, and 39 had other types of incontinence. We compared cognitive function (by Mini-mental State Examination: MMSE) and regional brain perfusion (by SPECT scanning) in these four groups. Patients with objectively demonstrated urge incontinence and reduced bladder sensation stood out as being different from the rest: their mean MMSE score was significantly lower than that of any of the other three groups; perfusion of the frontal cortex was significantly poorer than that in the continent and other incontinent groups; global cortical perfusion was significantly poorer than in the other incontinence groups. This was not found in patients with urge incontinence and normal bladder sensation. The observations support the hypothesis that in elderly people urge incontinence with reduced bladder sensation can be a consequence of cortical neuropathy, especially in the frontal lobes.
Among the elderly, both urge incontinence and elevated residual urine are common. When they occur together, they present a challenging clinical problem, called detrusor hyperactivity with impaired contractile function (DHIC). Impaired detrusor contractility has two aspects: elevated post-void residual urine volume and reduced detrusor contraction strength. Geriatric urge incontinence, especially in combination with reduced bladder sensation, is associated with specific cortical abnormalities: frontal and global cortical underperfusion and cognitive impairment. We have investigated, in 73 elderly incontinent patients, whether either aspect of impaired contractility is associated with urge incontinence, reduced sensation or these cortical abnormalities. For post-void residual urine, there are no significant associations. Detrusor contraction strength, however, is significantly increased (not impaired) if there is urge incontinence, reduced bladder sensation, or cortical underperfusion. Thus, DHIC appears to be a coincidental occurrence of two common conditions with different etiological factors.
Residual urine volume, though clinically important as a diagnostic tool, is reported to be variable and unreliable. Variability was examined among 14 geriatric patients, mean age 77 years. Residual urine was measured by ultrasound at three different times of day on each of two visits separated by 2-4 weeks. Results were examined by analysis of variance. Mean residual urine was 154 ml. Between-patient variability was large [standard deviation (SD) 246 ml]. There was no significant difference between values in men and women, nor between visits. Within-patient variability was large because of a large systematic variation with time of day (SD 128 ml), with greatest volumes in the early morning. The inherent, random variability of the measurement was much smaller than this (SD 44 ml). If the physiological factors causing the temporal variation could be controlled, more reproducible measurements would be possible.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2025 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.