Stress urinary incontinence

Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) has a high prevalence and may be extremely bothersome. It is important for the general urologist to be able to assess, describe, and categorize this group of patients so that treatment, if appropriate, may be instigated. One must become accustomed to using the standardized terminology of the International Continence Society and be confident in differentiating other causes of incontinence from SUI. This chapter describes the anatomy and physiology of continence, as well as the important aspects of the patient history and examination. There are a multitude of tests available to the urologist; in this chapter we describe their indications, findings, and limitations. The various management options for SUI are also considered including, physiotherapy, pharmacotherapy, bulking agents, autologous slings, tension-free tapes, and artificial urinary sphincters. Finally, we discuss post-prostatectomy incontinence, overflow incontinence, and continuous incontinence.