Urinary Incontinence in Men

Urinary incontinence in men is often related to prostate problems. As men age, the prostate gland grows larger, squeezing the Reference urethra Opens New Window and pushing the neck of the Reference bladder Opens New Window out of position. These changes can lead to incontinence. In most cases, incontinence due to prostate enlargement can be cured by medicine or prostate surgery.

But prostate surgery is also a major cause of urinary incontinence in men.

• Short-term (acute) incontinence following prostate surgery may go away with time, especially for younger men. In some cases, the incontinence may last up to a year.
• Reference Stress incontinence is a common complication following prostate removal (radical prostatectomy) or radiation treatment for prostate cancer, though it is becoming less common with improving surgical techniques.
• Some treatments for an enlarged prostate (benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH) can also cause incontinence, but this is uncommon.

If your incontinence is not related to prostate surgery and it appears suddenly, it will usually clear up after you have received treatment for whatever is causing the incontinence. For example, incontinence related to a Reference urinary tract infection Opens New Window, Reference prostatitis Opens New Window, or constipation will most likely disappear when the infection or condition is cured.

For some men, incontinence may have more than one cause.

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