9
5. TYPES
OF
INCONTINENCE
There are three types of incontinence:
Stress, Urge, and Mixed.
Stress Incontinence
If you leak urine when you cough,
sneeze, laugh, strain or make sudden
movements, this is called Stress
Incontinence.
It is particularly common in women who
have had a natural childbirth and occurs
when the bladder neck and the other
mechanisms that act to hold urine in the
bladder are not working properly. The
most common cause is a weak pelvic
floor.
Urge Incontinence
Describes an overactive bladder. A
person may experience a strong and
sudden urge to go to the toilet but are
not always able to hold on, or must go
so
frequently
that
it
becomes
inconvenient.
Mixed Incontinence
Is a combination of both Stress and
Urge Incontinence.
6.
HOW ‘EMS’ WORKS
E.M.S. stands for Electrical Muscle
Stimulation and has successfully been
used in medical rehabilitation and
training in competitive sports. EMS
produces
intensive
and
effective
muscular contraction.
In rehabilitation, EMS is a well-
established method for treatment of a
broad
field
of
musculoskeletal
diagnoses as well as pelvic floor
weakness. Electrical stimulation of an
intact peripheral nervous system may
create motor responses in patients with
impaired or lost ability for voluntary
muscle activity.
EMS is a complement to other physical
therapy
and
should
always
be
combined with active training such as
Kegel exercises (see section 4.2.).
Advantages of EMS
Use of EMS may lead to faster progress
in the patient’s treatment programme.
The method is simple and appropriate
for treatment in the clinical setting as
well as for self-treatment at home.
How EMS Works
Electrical Muscle Stimulators can play a
vital role in educating women and men
about their pelvic floor and the
sensation they should feel when doing
pelvic floor exercises. Electrical Pelvic
Floor Exercisers (PFE) offer a non-
invasive
method
of
producing
contraction of muscles via a gentle
stimulation to the pelvic floor through a
discreet probe or electrode pads when
