Many people with a Spinal Cord Injury will suffer from Urinary Retention because their injury has left them with a Neurogenic Bladder. A Neurogenic Bladder is a bladder that does not function as normal due to damaged nerves.
The central and peripheral nervous systems is responsible for normal function of the bladder The normal function of the urinary bladder is to store and expel urine in a coordinated, controlled fashion.
Urinary retention can cause an inability to empty the bladder of all of urine, even if it is full (acute urinary retention) or can cause difficulty with the initial flow and inability to completely empty. Often after voiding..there can be a feeling of still needing to empty (chronic urinary retention). This can cause the bladder to overstretch which also damages the muscles within the bladder.
Individuals who suffer with retention, either acute or chronic will be taught to either self catheterize at regular intervals during the day or have an indwelling catheter in place. Catheterizing then empties the bladder,
If catheterizing was not already in place then acute retention would be a medical emergency, chronic retention may not seem life threatening but it can cause serious problems.
Below is a diagram showing the Urinary Tract System
Urine retention can cause the bladder to become over full...if this happens then urine can 'back up' to the kidneys which can be a very serious problem. This can then damage the kidneys and cause reduced kidney function. If too much function is lost then dialysis may be needed or even a transplant.
Other issues can be caused from catheterizing due to UTI infections.
I came across this diagram this morning and i love how it shows clearly which nerves supply parts of the bladder..please see the illustration below:
The sacral nerves are positioned at the lower part of the spine and are indicated in yellow on the diagram. The sacral nerves supply the bladder's detrusor muscle and external sphincter muscles.
When i self catheter my sphincter often goes into spasm...as many individuals with SCI also experience. I can see easier how this affects flow of urine when it becomes irritated when catheterising as the catheter passes through.
This is helping me to understand the complications associated with my SCI far more than any health professional. Thank you Lara for this great source if educational info :-)
This is helping me to understand the complications associated with my SCI far more than any health professional. Thank you Lara for this great source if educational info :-)
Im real pleased that you found the info helpful royston...We need to get info to our members and guests that makes sense. I feel that professionals dont give us the time to explain fully and when they do it isnt clear. There is so much to learn about our injuries and clarity is vital!
This is helping me to understand the complications associated with my SCI far more than any health professional. Thank you Lara for this great source if educational info :-)
How do you guys set up a bladder schedule, like setting an alarm when it's time to cath? How long do you go between? I've been having horrible nerve pain in my tailbone and I fell on it last Saturday (Oct 11, 2014), and now, well, before I got the UTI from the hot tub, I can't feel when my bladder is full!
How do you guys set up a bladder schedule, like setting an alarm when it's time to cath? How long do you go between? I've been having horrible nerve pain in my tailbone and I fell on it last Saturday (Oct 11, 2014), and now, well, before I got the UTI from the hot tub, I can't feel when my bladder is full!
I can never tell when my bladder is full and many with SCI cant either so a routine is always put in place,...
I would catheter 5/6 times a day depending....Last catheter would be approx 12 midnight and then approx 6.30 am in the morning if not a little sooner. I dont sleep much! Every 4 hours would be good time to not go past at this point..Record how much you are voiding using a jug or the bag that comes with the speedi cath.
This post goes into or link to the amounts you dont want to exceed...you dont want to stretch your bladder Knight
How do you guys set up a bladder schedule, like setting an alarm when it's time to cath? How long do you go between? I've been having horrible nerve pain in my tailbone and I fell on it last Saturday (Oct 11, 2014), and now, well, before I got the UTI from the hot tub, I can't feel when my bladder is full!
my speedicaths didn't come with bags. are they supposed to?
They are a separate order and come supplied by speedicath to use with this catheter Knight...They are very neat and fit directly over the bottom of your catheter. If you void over the toilet you are ok but i need to lie a little back to catheter so i dont do over a toilet. They would be useful for you if you are going anywhere and cant access a toilet...
Please send me your address again Knight and i promise i will send you some because if you have to pay thats pretty bad..i have lots spare!
Post by kilg0retr0ut on Oct 18, 2014 6:17:58 GMT -8
Just wondering what possible damage dj and I may be doing to ourselves. I only cath once a day. I can sorta pee when my bladder is overfilled. I know I m not emptying fully. Does anyone know what that kind of abuse will bring, and how long would it take to cause problems. I'm have an appointment with my urologist soon and will ask her. My crazy way of thinking is if it takes like 20yrs to ruin your bladder then I'm good.
Just wondering what possible damage dj and I may be doing to ourselves. I only cath once a day. I can sorta pee when my bladder is overfilled. I know I m not emptying fully. Does anyone know what that kind of abuse will bring, and how long would it take to cause problems. I'm have an appointment with my urologist soon and will ask her. My crazy way of thinking is if it takes like 20yrs to ruin your bladder then I'm good.
I did that for less than a year, and UTI after UTI! I was risking reflux into my kidneys, and suffered kidney stones multiple times. My urologist (I finally got referred after 1.5 years post-SCI) almost cried when I told him the original Rehab doctor had me doing that! but if your urologist says it's ok, I would go with his/her call on it. Everyone is different, and women's urinary tract is a bit different than men's.