Chief Guest Mr Amit Garg advices against shying away from urinary incontinence and wants the message of it being common & has a remedy, to be spread!
- Patients delay seeking treatment due to embarrassment, the consequences can be serious
- Awareness is essential that urinary incontinence is treatable
Hyderabad, April 9th, 2017: Apollo Hospitals, Hyderguda, organised a Walk 'Let’s Talk About Incontinence' - to raise awareness about urinary incontinence, from Public Gardens to Apollo Hospitals, Hyderguda, on Sunday. Chief Guest Mr Amit Garg, IPS, IGP, AP; Dr Sanjay Sinha, Consultant Urologist & Transplant Surgeon, Apollo Hospitals, Hyderguda; Dr Sanjeev Singh Yadav, President, IMA - Hyderabad; MrSubramaniam, CEO, Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad; Mrs Amita Desai, Founding Director, Goethe-Zentrum, Hyderabad and Mr Chandrashekar, President, Rotary Club - Hyderabad Central, participated in the walk. patients, doctors and volunteers joined in the walk. Some heroic patients who battled immense odds were felicitated on the occasion. The initiative was supported by IMA (Hyderabad City), Rotary International(Hyderabad Central), Goethe Zentrum & Alliance Francaise.
The bladder has two functions, storage and emptying of urine. The normal bladder stores urine at low pressure and empties in an effective and at safe pressure. Urinary incontinence, which means “lack of control” on storing and emptying of urine by bladder, is a common problem in the society. It can occur at any age and can have a profound impact on life both physical and psychological.
Speaking on the occasion Mr Amit Garg said, I have known of walks to raise awareness mostly on heart problems, diabetes, but good to see a walk being organised for an ailment which people shy away to discuss or speak in a hush-hush tone. It was also deeply touching to felicitate such brave individuals who came out and faced the challenge, they are the real role models. Generally the outcomes of such walks are people participate, go the distance and forget the issue, but this is an ailment which needs more than that from us, we need to take the message forward and spread the it that the problem is common and has a remedy. There is a stigma associated with urinary incontinence, people don't share the problem they are enduring, especially those from the rural areas due to embarrassment. We need to address the issue to overcome it, otherwise it can be fatal in the long run. When we know urinary incontinence can be treated at the rudimentary stage and easy to come out of it, we should not let anyone suffer from it, he said.
According to Dr Sanjay Sinha, urinary incontinence is perceived as a social stigma, and the patients don't come forward to seek treatment for a long period, by when it could be difficult to treat. It also has profound impact on the quality of life of the individual. The elders who suffer from it, in their rush to go to washroom to relieve would trip and end up with fracture and serious consequences. It is common for urinary incontinence patients and their family members to delay seeking treatment due to embarrassment and also that it is not a life threatening problem. Though it's easy to treat, delay in seeking treatment can have serious consequences. Especially patients with nerve related bladder problem can end up with kidney failure, we see atleast two patients every week with serious kidney problems purely due to delay in seeking treatment. Therefore it is imperative to create awareness that almost all patients with urinary incontinence can benefit from help, but they should make an effort to seek help early, says Dr Sanjay Sinha. If you have Urinary incontinence problem you should come out, speak up and seek medical attention. We as individuals have responsibility to talk about the problem, de-stigmatize it and encourage the patients to seek treatment.
Mr Subramaniam said, since the problem looks frivolous, patients are not even aware whether there is treatment for it and silently suffer from it. My mother had the problem, but we came to know of it only in her last stages. She used to avoid socializing, attend happy family gatherings, now we know it was due to her urinary incontinence problem. This is a cause of depression amongst those who suffer and is only appropriate to highlight now that WHO has focused this year WHO Day on Depression. We just need to spread awareness about the issue so that more and more people come forward and the doctors are there to treat the problem.
Dr Sanjeev Singh Yadav said, IMA is for such initiatives as we want the public to know more about the disease and preventive aspects than about diagnosis or treatment of disease. We are focusing on issue of assaults on medical professionals, which have become rampant off late, we are discussing with Central government and authorities to address the issue and find solutions, he said.
Urinary incontinence may take several forms like:
Bedwetting usually stems from a harmless delay in the maturation of the nervous system. It can affect 15% of children at the age of 5 years. Persistence of the problem in an older child needs evaluation, as it may be due to problems of bladder function.
Neurogenic bladder is a problem of bladder function arising out of a defect in the nerve supply. It might be accompanied by constipation and obvious birth abnormalities of the spinal cord. In some individuals, such nerve problems may also result from injuries of the spinal cord, surgery or diseases of the nervous system. Neurogenic bladder needs specialized evaluation by urodynamics (bladder function test). Neglected, neurogenic bladder can damage the kidneys and lead to dialysis or transplantation.
Stress urinary incontinence occurs primarily in adult women and is characterized by leakage of urine on coughing, sneezing or activity. This is more a social problem than a health problem. However, many women continue to suffer in silence since they are not aware of the available treatments.
Urgency urinary incontinence is due to “irritability” of the bladder on account of overactive bladder and is common in the elderly.
Overflow incontinence, as the name implies, happens when the bladder fails to empty. This may result from bladder muscle weakness or severe obstruction.
Apollo Hospitals, Hyderguda, is a referral center for lower urinary tract problems and urodynamics (bladder function evaluation) and is probably the busiest center in India for such evaluation today. It has one of the largest experience with Augmentation Cystoplasty surgery and Stress Urinary Incontinence surgery in India.
About Apollo Hospitals
It was in 1983, that Dr. Prathap Reddy made a pioneering endeavor by launching India’s first corporate hospital - Apollo Hospital in Chennai. Now, as Asia largest and most trusted healthcare group, its presence includes more than 10000 beds across 65 Hospitals, 2000 Pharmacies, 92 Primary Care and Diagnostic Clinics, 100 Telemedicine units across 10 countries. Health Insurance services, Global Projects Consultancy, 15 colleges of Nursing and Hospital Management and a Research Foundation with a focus on global Clinical Trials, epidemiological studies, stem cell & genetic research and the first Proton Therapy Center across Asia, Africa and Australia.
In a rare honor, the Government of India issued a commemorative stamp in recognition of Apollo's contribution, the first for a healthcare organization. Apollo Hospitals Chairman, Dr. Prathap C Reddy, was conferred with the prestigious Padma Vibhushan in 2010. For more than 30 years, the Apollo Hospitals Group has continuously excelled and maintained leadership in medical innovation, world-class clinical services and cutting-edge technology. Our hospitals are consistently ranked amongst the best hospitals globally for advanced medical services and research.
