Urinary Incontinence During Pregnancy: Causes And How To Deal With It

Get to know why some women are more vulnerable to developing urinary incontinence than others. Also, find some expert suggested measures to deal with incontinence.

Written By: Longjam Dineshwori | Updated : February 1, 2023 1:16 PM IST

Urinary incontinence (UI) is the unintended passage of urine due to poor bladder control. It's estimated that millions of individuals around the world are impacted by this problem. According to IUK, urinary incontinence affects around 300m people worldwide, about 5 per cent of the population. Also known as overactive bladder, UI can affect people of all ages, but it is more common among older people and pregnant women.

Talking to TheHealthSite, Dr. Bharathi Ramesh, Senior Consultant - Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, Motherhood Hospitals, Banashankari, Bangalore, explains why pregnant women vulnerable to developing urinary incontinence as well as shares some measures expecting moms can take to deal with the condition.

Urinary incontinence during pregnancy

With pregnancy, mothers have to deal with the ever-increasing weight of the baby, the uterus, and the associated fluids. As a result, the likelihood of stress incontinence substantially increases during the course of a nine-month pregnancy.

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Stress incontinence occurs when the downward pressure from the abdomen and pelvis overwhelms the strength of the pelvic floor muscles, which support the pelvic contents from beneath. It's actually very common.
Other types of incontinence: In the beginning of pregnancy, women tend to have morning sickness and vomiting. Vomiting is an overwhelming force in the abdomen, and that can make people chuck from one end and leak from the other, but that one sort of improves around the three-month mark.
Weight gain causes stress incontinence, which worsens towards the end of pregnancy. Because a woman has a very high hormonal load on her pelvic floor at that point, which means oestrogen is very high and tends to make the body a little softer and looser, your pelvic floor is also attempting to hold up something that is a little more flexible than usual.
So, by the time you are 12 weeks pregnant the baby is out of the pelvic cavity, but your bladder is still in the pelvic cavity, so it's much more susceptible to pressure from above, raising the odds for urinary incontinence. If you've already got an existing problem, it might get worse during pregnancy, so if you know that you are a person who has had urge incontinence or an overactive bladder.

Factors leading to incontinence in pregnancy

Some women are more vulnerable than others. Women with a higher BMI are more obese; they have more weight on their pelvic floor to begin with and this can cause the condition to aggravate. Women who have twin pregnancy have more weight and that puts pressure on the pelvic region.
Someone who has a pre-existing condition, which could have been incontinence or another pelvic issue in the past.
If you have a respiratory condition that causes you to cough frequently, and your symptoms worsen during pregnancy because some women cough more during pregnancy due to nasal congestion.

You should see your doctor to get more clarity on the cause if you experience urinary incontinence. Incontinence during pregnancy is bothersome to deal with for the mother, but with adequate care, it's not something that poses a threat to you or your baby in most cases.

Some measures to deal with incontinence

Dr. Bharathi recommends expecting mothers to avoid carbonated drinks and caffeine because they irritate the bladder and increase the risk of loss if they have stress urinary leakage. Further she suggest pregnant women to:

Stop drinking water close to bedtime so that when you go to bed, you don't wake up overnight to pass urine. It could be an hour and a half; it could be two hours, depending on how frequently you wake up overnight.
Ensure an adequate intake of fibre.
Consider kegel exercises, also known as pelvic floor exercises. These exercises aid in the strengthening of the muscles that support the bladder, uterus, and intestines. You may improve your capacity to relax and regulate your muscles in preparation for labour and delivery by strengthening these muscles throughout pregnancy. Kegel exercises are strongly suggested during the postpartum period (after giving birth) to enhance perineal tissue healing, boost pelvic floor muscle strength, and assist these muscles in returning to a healthy condition (including better urinary control) as constipation makes you strain, which makes you more likely to pee.