Glossary Click >> A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z A Alarm devices: A category of devices that work by detecting moisture and waking your child up before he or she wets the bed. A sensor is attached to the child's tummy. At the first sign of moisture it sends a signal to a bell or buzzer. Anti-diuretic hormone (also called vasopressin): A naturally occurring hormone (called vasopressin) that directs the kidneys to concentrate urine while you sleep. Anal sphincters: The muscles in the anus (opening to the rectum). Anus: The final two inches of the rectum, surrounded by the internal anal sphincter and the external sphincter. Stool is passed through the anus, which is an opening. B Bladder: The bladder is a muscular organ, which lies in the pelvis and is supported by the pelvic floor muscle. The bladder has only two functions; to stretch to allow the storage of urine and to contract to enable the expulsion of urine. The term detrusor is used to refer to the smooth muscle structure of the bladder. Bladder Capacity: The amount (maximum volume) of urine that the bladder can hold. Often referred to as bladder volume. Bladder neck: Area of the bladder where the bladder joins the urethra. This area contains the internal sphincter and is a thick layer of muscle fibres. Bowel movement: The act of passing faeces (stool) through the anus Bowels: Another word for intestines or colon. C Compliance: A term used for the bladder to determine its ability to stretch or expand. Persons can have a "poorly compliant bladder" which means that the bladder does not stretch as well and holds smaller amounts of urine (small capacity). Constipation: A condition in which bowel movements are infrequent, hard and dry, and elimination of faeces is difficult and infrequent. Continence: The ability to exercise voluntary control over the urge (hold) to void (urinate) or defecate until an appropriate time and place can be found to void (or have a bowel movement). D DDAVP (desmopressin): Desmopressin is a man-made copy of the anti-diuretic hormone vasopressin. Known by its brand name, DDAVP, desmopressin is a bedwetting treatment that concentrates the body's urine on a short-term basis and stops the bladder from overfilling. Defecate: The act of having a bowel movement. Dehydration: A state that occurs when not enough fluid is present to fulfil the body's fluid needs. Detrusor: In the urinary system, the detrusor muscle is the smooth muscle in the wall of the bladder that contracts the bladder and expels the urine. The bladder is often referred to as the detrusor muscle. Disimpaction: The act of removing stool from the rectum, which could not be eliminated normally. Enemas, suppositories, laxatives, and finger extraction are all means of disimpaction. Dysuria: Painful or difficult urination, most frequently caused by infection or inflammation but certain drugs can also cause it. E Encopresis: The  medical name for soiling caused by constipation Enuresis: The involuntary loss of urine (urinary incontinence) during sleep. This term is most often applied to bedwetting in children. Evacuation: Another word for a bowel movement. F Faecal incontinence: The accidental and involuntary loss of liquid or solid stool or gas from the anus. Faecal Impaction: A mass of stool (faeces) that remains packed in the rectum rather than being passed normally. Impaction can contribute to incontinence by irritating the urethra-causing urge UI or by blocking the urethra preventing the bladder from emptying completely causing overflow incontinence. Faeces (stool): Waste material produced from the intestines. Faeces are composed of bacteria, undigested food and material produced from the intestines. Frequency: An abnormally frequent desire to void usually more than eight times a day, often of only small amounts (e.g. less than 200ml). G Gas: Material that results from: swallowed air, air produced from certain foods or that is created when bacteria in the colon break down waste material. Gas that is released from the rectum is called flatulence. H Hematuria: Blood in the urine. Hesitancy: Difficulty when starting the urine stream, or an increase in length of time between initiation of voiding, by relaxation of the urethral sphincter, and when urine stream actually begins. Hormone Imbalance: The most common cause of childhood bedwetting (primary nocturnal enuresis). When a child's night-time production of anti-diuretic hormone (vasopressin) is insufficient to stop the bladder from overfilling, the medical term for the condition is a hormone imbalance. I Impaction: A blockage of stool in the rectum usually composed of a large amount of dried stool that is difficult to evacuate. Incontinence: The accidental or involuntary loss of urine or stool. A person may have urinary or faecal incontinence or both (sometimes called double incontinence.) Intermittency: Interruption of the urinary stream while voiding. M Meatus: The opening to the urethra. Micturition: Another term for urination or voiding. N Nervous System: The nervous system is made up of nerves that are voluntary and involuntary is composed of the brain, the spinal cord, and the sensory nerves. The nervous system carries messages to the brain from the body, and motor nerves, which provide messages from the brain to the muscles and which help muscles function. Nocturia: Awakening at night by the need to void. As a person ages, the number of times he or she awakens to void will increase. Nocturnal enuresis: The involuntary loss of urine (urinary incontinence) in adults that occurs during sleep. This term is most often used for bedwetting in children. O Overactive bladder: A condition characterized by involuntary detrusor (bladder) contractions during the time the bladder is filling, which may be spontaneous or provoked and which the patient cannot suppress. Symptoms include urinary urgency, frequency, and nocturia and may include urge incontinence. Overflow incontinence: The involuntary loss of urine associated with over distension of the bladder. Overflow incontinence results from urinary retention that causes the capacity of the bladder to be overwhelmed. This is when continuous or intermittent leakage of a small amount of urine results. P Physical Cause: Some of the less common causes of childhood nighttime bedwetting are physical deformities to the bladder or urethra. Urinary tract infections can also impact bladder control and cause bedwetting. Psychological Cause: Though much rarer than the hormone imbalance that normally causes bedwetting, the condition can be caused or aggravated by psychological factors - particularly those related to home life or self-esteem. Achievement concerns can be a factor, as can a number of other psychosocial stresses. This is a complicated area to diagnose and treat, so if you suspect that your child's bedwetting may have a psychological basis, please see your doctor as soon as possible. R Rectum: Last segment of colon, or large intestine, the lowest part of the bowel found right before the anus. S Scheduled toileting: Assistance to toilet or use of bedpan or urinal offered on a fixed schedule, for example, every 2 to 4 hours. Sensory urgency: Urgency associated with bladder hypersensitivity (see urge/urgency). Sphincter: Muscular structure that surrounds the urethra and allows the bladder to store or empty urine. This muscle is circular and acts like a valve, can relax or tighten to open or close the outlet of the bladder. The urethra has an internal and external sphincter. Internal sphincter is the portion of the urethra found at the bladder neck that keeps the urethra closed when a person is at rest. External sphincter is the portion of the urethra that is under a person's own control (voluntary control). The external sphincter is able top stop the flow of urine during voiding. T Transient urinary incontinence: Temporary episodes of urinary incontinence that is reversible once the cause or causes of the episode(s) are identified and treated. Trigone: The most sensitive area on the inside (wall) of the bladder, where bladder nerves are most highly concentrated. U Under active bladder: A condition characterized by a bladder contraction of inadequate magnitude and/or duration to effect bladder emptying in a normal time span. Drugs, faecal impaction, and neurologic conditions such as diabetic neuropathy or low spinal cord injury or as a result of radical pelvic surgery can cause this condition. It also can result from a weakening of the detrusor muscle from vitamin B12 deficiency or idiopathic causes. Bladder underactivity may cause over distension of the bladder, resulting in overflow incontinence (see overflow incontinence). Ureters: Two very thin muscular tubes about 8 or 9 inches long that transport urine from the kidneys to the bladder. Urethra: A narrow tube through which urine flows from the bladder to the outside of the body; the opening of the urethra is at the end of the penis in men and just above the vaginal opening in women. Urethral sphincter mechanism: The segment of the urethra that influences storage and emptying of urine in the bladder. The urethral sphincter is like a "valve" that controls bladder emptying and voiding by tightening to close off the flow of urine or by relaxing, which opens the outlet from the bladder, allowing urine to flow from the bladder to the outside of the body. A deficiency of the urethral sphincter mechanism may allow leakage of urine in the absence of a detrusor (bladder) contraction. Urethrovesical: Connection or junction between the base of bladder (bladder neck) and urethra. Urge: the sensation from the bladder producing the desire to void. Urge incontinence: The involuntary and accidental loss of urine when the person is aware of the need to get to the bathroom but is not able to hold the urine long enough to get there. Usually it is associated with an abrupt and strong desire to void (urgency). Urge incontinence is usually associated with the urodynamics findings of involuntary detrusor contractions or detrusor overactivity (see detrusor external sphincter dyssynergia, detrusor hyperactivity with impaired bladder contractility, detrusor instability, hyperreflexia, sensory urgency). Urgency: A strong, intense desire to void immediately. It often accompanies frequency. Urinal: A portable device that is used as a receptacle for urine. Urinary incontinence (UI): Involuntary or accidental loss of urine sufficient to be a problem. There are several types of UI, but all are characterized by an inability to restrain or control urinary voiding (see mixed urinary incontinence, nocturnal enuresis, overflow incontinence, stress incontinence, transient urinary incontinence, urge incontinence). Urinary tract: Passageway from the pelvis of the kidney to the urinary orifice through the ureters, bladder, and urethra. There is an upper urinary tract (2 kidneys and 2 ureters) and a lower urinary tract (bladder, sphincters and urethra). Urinary tract infection (UTI): An infection in the urinary tract caused by the invasion of disease-causing micro-organisms, which proceed to establish themselves, multiply, and produce various symptoms in their host. Infection of the bladder, better known as cystitis, is particularly common in women, mainly because of the much shorter urethra, which provides less of a barrier to bacteria. In men, infection is usually associated with obstruction to the flow of urine, such as prostate gland enlargement. Urinate: To void or to pass urine. Urination: The act of passing urine. Urine: The waste products filtered from the blood and combined with excess water by the kidneys. Urodynamics tests: Tests designed to duplicate as nearly as possible the symptoms of incontinence in the way that you actually experience them. These tests determine the anatomic and functional status of the urinary bladder and urethra (see cystometry, electromyography, urethral pressure profilometry, uroflowmetry, videourodynamics). V Valsalva manoeuvre: The action of closing the airways and straining down on the abdominal muscles (such as when straining to have a bowel movement). Vasopressin: Vasopressin is the anti-diuretic hormone produced by the body that directs the kidneys to concentrate urine while you sleep. Voiding or bladder diary (record): Also called an "incontinence chart." A record maintained by the patient or caregiver that is used to record the frequency, timing, amount of voiding, and/or other factors associated with the patient's urinary incontinence. Voiding Reflex: the reflex in which the bladder indicates to the spinal cord that it is full of urine and the spinal cord then signals the bladder to contract and empty. back to top     website by: Coast Computers Ltd - Nelson login