Frequent urination, where you feel an urge to pass urine more often than usual, is not just a a nuisance and a cause of poor sleep, it can be a symptom of an underlying medical condition. Polyuria is a medical term that refers to the excessive passing of urine (frequent urination).
Unfortunately many people soldier on, perhaps accepting it as something they have to put up with, or they don't think it is worth bothering the doctor about or maybe they are scared it might signify something serious. Urine is a waste product made in the kidneys. The kidneys spurt urine into the ureters which then pass it into the bladder, where it collects ready to be expelled from the body via the urethra. Normal urine is a clear, transparent, amber-colour fluid made of urea, uric acid, and water. Some diseases cause other substances to appear in urine, such as sugar (diabetes), albumin (kidney disease), and bile pigments (jaundice).
The average person probably excretes about 5 to 8 cups or 1 to 1.8 litres of urine every 24 hours.
Urination or micturition is the process of expelling urine from the body. The process is complex and involves muscles of the bladder and sphincter mechanism, controlled by various nerve centers in the central and peripheral nervous systems.
Why Recurrent Urination
1. Urinary system:
2. Kidney, 3. Renal pelvis, 4. Ureter, 5. Urinary bladder, 6. Urethra. 7. Adrenal gland
Vessels:
8. Renal artery & vein, 9. Inferior vena cava, 10. Abdominal aorta, 11. Common iliac artery & vein
With transparency:
12. Liver, 13. Large intestine, 14. Pelvis
2. Kidney, 3. Renal pelvis, 4. Ureter, 5. Urinary bladder, 6. Urethra. 7. Adrenal gland
Vessels:
8. Renal artery & vein, 9. Inferior vena cava, 10. Abdominal aorta, 11. Common iliac artery & vein
With transparency:
12. Liver, 13. Large intestine, 14. Pelvis
Frequent urination is where you pass urine more often than usual. This can sometimes occur with urgent urination: a sudden, compelling urge to urinate, along with discomfort in the bladder.
Most people can sleep for 6 to 8 hours without having to urinate, but many have to get up in the night to relieve themselves. This frequent need to urinate at night is called nocturia, and is common in both men and women. By disturbing sleep, nocturia can significantly affect quality of life. It is important to assess the underlying cause of nocturia, because chronic conditions, such as diabetes, can present in this way. Frequent urination is not the same as urinary incontinence, which is where there is no voluntary control of bladder function, reminiscent of the infant's involuntary reflex. However, urinary incontinence can be a cause of frequent urination, and/or the two can occur together.
When doctors assess urinary symptoms, they try to distinguish among several possibilities, such as nocturia, daytime frequent urination, urinary incontinence, obstructive symptom (such as poor, intermittent stream or terminal dribble), and irritative symptoms (such as urgency, burning sensation). There are also other considerations, such as when is the symptom not something to worry about? For instance, in men it is so common to have a little "leakage" at the end of the stream (the post-micturition dribble), that it does not count as an abnormality. Also, many women leak a little urine on coughing. So one of the ways to decide if a seemingly harmless urinary symptom is an issue, is to establish the extent to which it impacts quality of life.
If urinary frequency is affecting your quality of life, or you also have other unexplained symptoms such as back or side pain, vomiting, fever, chills, fatigue, bloody or cloudy urine, or discharge from the vagina or penis, or an increase in appetite or thirst, then it is important to seek medical attention promptly. For instance, one cause of frequent urination is kidney infection, and this requires prompt attention. If not treated, a kidney infection can permanently damage the kidneys, or the bacteria can infect the bloodstream and become life-threatening.
Causes
Urination is a complex process involving different muscle groups and types, and an intricate nerve network located in the brain and spine, and in and around the bladder. It is no wonder therefore that frequent urination can be a symptom of so many different diseases, conditions and disorders, both physiological and psychological.
The main thing to bear in mind is that if frequent urination is unexplained and persistent, then it could be a symptom of something serious. Some drugs, such as diuretics, can also produce this symptom.
Drinking too much fluid before bedtime, especially if it contains caffeine or alcohol, can cause frequent urination at night time.
This could simply be a habit, in which case it may still be advisable to eliminate other potential concerns.
The most common causes of frequent urination are diabetes, pregnancy and prostate problems.
Other causes of frequent urination include:
Anxiety,
Medication, for example diuretics,
Stroke, or other brain or nervous system condition,
Infection of the prostate gland (prostatitis),
Enlarged prostate,
Kidney infection,
Tumour or mass in the pelvic area,
Interstitial cystitis (inflammation of the bladder wall),
Overactive bladder syndrome (unexplained, uncontrolled bladder contractions),
Cancer of the bladder,
Dysfunction of the bladder,
Bladder stones,
Urinary incontinence,
Abnormal opening (fistula) in the urinary tract,
Radiation of the pelvis, e.g. to treat cancer
in next blog we will see when to see doctor and treatment
