Here's How Women Can Deal With Stress Urinary Incontinence

Are you a woman that is afraid to laugh, sneeze or run? Don't be shy— you're not alone! It's only human nature that women's bodies will undergo certain changes after pregnancy, childbirth and aging. If you're unhappy or embarrassed with the appearance, leakage or performance "down there," your best bet is to get advice from an expert.

Dr. Shareef Jandali of Jandali Plastic Surgery is revealing the best treatment options for dealing with stress urinary incontinence. From non-surgical procedures to tightening exercises, Dr. Jandali has all the answers to help you regain your satisfaction and confidence, as well as feel more comfortable in your own skin.

Patch: What exactly is stress urinary incontinence that affects women?

Dr. Jandali: Stress urinary incontinence is simply unintentional leakage of urine. This often occurs with women when there is some physical activity that puts pressure on the bladder, like coughing, sneezing, laughing, jumping, or exercising. It can be quite embarrassing and limit activities at work or exercise. Many women wear pads if they suffer from urinary incontinence.

Patch: What are some of the causes of stress urinary incontinence?

Dr. Jandali: Stress urinary incontinence occurs when the muscles and tissues that support the bladder and urinary sphincter become weak. In women, this most commonly occurs after childbirth, especially a vaginal delivery. Most cases resolve in the first year after childbirth. However, 5 years after delivery, about a third to half of women report some degree of urinary incontinence. It can also occur with obesity, aging, and smoking (which leads to chronic coughing).

About 10-20% of women report having leakage that they consider "socially bothersome."

What is the Geneveve by Viveve treatment and how does it work?

Dr. Jandali: Geneveve by Viveve is one of the newest vaginal rejuvenation devices. We are proud to be the only practice in Connecticut with Viveve. Viveve uses radiofrequency energy to gently heat the vaginal tissues. This stimulates collagen production and remodeling in the muscles and tissues around the urinary sphincter. It is indicated for urinary stress incontinence, but also treats vaginal laxity and dryness.

We have seen spectacular results with Viveve for mild to moderate stress urinary incontinence. Women who used to leak urine on a daily basis no longer have urine leakage within a few weeks to a few months after a single treatment.

Our female staff perform all of our non-surgical vaginal rejuvenation treatments, which allows patients to be comfortable discussing vaginal health issues.

Patch: What are some of the pros and cons of Viveve?

Dr. Jandali: Viveve is performed as a single treatment and results last 1-2 years. A Viveve treatment takes about 30 minutes to perform in our office. Geneveve is the only treatment in the category to cool and protect surface tissue while deeply heating the tissue below, which promotes gradual collagen renewal. Due to this patented cooling system, there is no pain with the procedure and minimal downtime.

One of the other perks with Viveve is that it stimulates all around vaginal rejuvenation, helping with vaginal laxity, vaginal dryness, and orgasmic problems.

Patch: Why do women choose Viveve over other treatments for stress urinary incontinence?

Dr. Jandali: There aren’t many great options for stress urinary incontinence in women. There are actually no FDA approved medications to specifically treat urinary stress incontinence in the U.S.

Women can obtain a very mild improvement with Kegel exercises, which are movements that can strengthen the pelvic floor muscles and urinary sphincter. Kegel exercises need to be continued on a regular basis to maintain their benefit.

Another option is a vaginal pessary, which is a small silicone ring which the patient places into their vagina and puts gentle pressure on the urethra to act like a “speed bump” for the urine. The pessary needs to be in place whenever leakage occurs, either throughout the day or just during certain activities or sports. Injections of certain fillers are also being performed around the urethra to give more support to help block urine leakage.

The last option for women suffering from moderate to severe urinary incontinence is surgery. Surgery usually consists of some form of a “bladder sling”, which is when a mesh is inserted in the pelvic area to help support the urethra. Bladder slings have downtime, surgical risks, anesthesia risks, and can potentially fail and need to be redone.

Patch: Who is the best candidate for the Viveve procedure?

Dr. Jandali: Women that leak urine when they cough, sneeze, laugh, run, jump, or exercise are great candidates. Women that wear pads for leaking urine can stop being embarrassed and return to normal life.

Women cannot be pregnant and should have a recent normal pap smear. Women who have a severely prolapsed bladder (cystocele) or rectum (rectocele) are not good candidates for Viveve and likely need surgical repair.

Any woman that suffers from vaginal laxity, vaginal dryness, or orgasmic problems, can have significant improvement with a single Viveve treatment.

Patch: Is Viveve safe?

Dr. Jandali: Yes, Geneveve by Viveve is a very safe procedure. It is non-surgical and uses radiofrequency energy instead of lasers. Vaginal lasers, such as FemiLift, MonaLisa Touch, diVa, and IntimaLase, all take off a layer of the mucosa inside the vagina. This leads to extended downtime, longer healing, and can potentially lead to vaginal scarring. In addition, they don’t penetrate as deep as Viveve, so they are much less effective for stress urinary incontinence.

Patch: What is the recovery time like after Viveve?

Dr. Jandali: There is minimal recovery time since the surface tissue in the vagina is not injured like the other devices that use lasers. Thanks to the patented cooling, patients can return to normal activities immediately and sex after just 2 days.

You can learn more about Jandali Plastic Surgery on their website, Facebook or Instagram.

Office address: 5520 Park Ave, Suite WP-2-300 Trumbull, CT 06611

Phone: 203-374-0310

Image Credit: Jandali Plastic Surgery