What is the bladder?

Your bladder is the organ in your pelvis that stores urine (wee). It is part of your urinary system.

Your bladder works with your kidneys to remove waste products from your blood. Your kidneys make urine, which is transported to your bladder along tubes called ureters.

Once the urine reaches your bladder, it stays there until you empty it. Urine (wee) leaves your body by passing through a narrow tube called the urethra.

What happens when you urinate?

To urinate (do a wee), your urethral sphincter (the muscle controlling the bladder outlet) and pelvic floor muscles relax. Your bladder then contracts (squeezes) so that it empties.

How much urine can your bladder hold?

Your bladder can hold up to 600 millilitres (mL) of urine. But you usually feel the need to go to the toilet when it's holding around 200mL to 300mL.

Most people empty their bladder 4 to 6 times a day.

What are some symptoms of bladder problems?

Bladder problems are fairly common.

Symptoms of bladder conditions can include:

• Wetting yourself (even a little) when you cough, sneeze, laugh or when active.
• Feeling an urgent need to urinate or not getting to the toilet in time.
• Passing small amounts of urine more than 8 times a day.
• Waking up to urinate more than once during the night.
• Unexpected changes in your bladder habits.
• Lower abdominal (belly) pain or pelvic pain when urinating.
• Blood in your urine.

Speak to your doctor if you're having problems with your bladder.

See your doctor straight away if you notice bright red blood in your urine or if your urine has turned pink, red or brown.

What types of conditions can affect the bladder?

Bladder conditions include incontinence, infections, inflammation and nerve problems.

Loss of bladder control — incontinence

If you can't always control your bladder, you may have urinary incontinence. Urinary incontinence is any involuntary (accidental) loss of urine from your bladder. It ranges from small 'leaks' to complete loss of control.

There are many types of urinary incontinence. Treatment depends on the type and cause.

You can make some lifestyle changes to help stop or reduce leaks, such as:

• keeping to a healthy weight
• not smoking
• eating more fibre
• drinking enough water
• exercising your pelvic floor

Bladder infection

A bladder infection is also known as 'cystitis'.

Common symptoms include:

• needing to urinate more often (and sometimes urgently)
• pain or discomfort when urinating
• feeling like your bladder is full even after you have done a wee
• smelly, cloudy or dark coloured urine

See your doctor if you have symptoms of a bladder infection or urinary tract infection (UTI).

Overactive bladder

Overactive bladder is when your bladder muscles contract on their own. They may contract when your bladder is not full or when you are not ready to empty your bladder.

This can cause symptoms such as:

• needing to wee urgently, sometimes causing loss of bladder control
• weeing more often than usual
• waking up more than once a night to wee
• leaking on your way to the toilet

Talk to your doctor if you have these symptoms as treatments are available.

Neurogenic bladder

'Neurogenic bladder dysfunction' is when there are problems with your bladder and how it empties caused by problems with your nerves. It can cause problems with your bladder control.

Neurogenic bladder can affect people with conditions such as:

• a spinal cord injury
• stroke
• multiple sclerosis
• Parkinson's disease
• dementia
• diabetes

Other bladder problems

Other problems that can affect your bladder include:

• bladder prolapse in females (when the bladder moves from its normal position and pushes into the wall of the vagina)
• bladder cancer

What tests are there for bladder problems?

There are different tests that your doctor might recommend to find out more about why you are having bladder problems. These can include:

• urine tests
• a bladder ultrasound scan
• a cystoscopy — a procedure to look inside the bladder using an instrument called a cystoscope (a thin tube with a light and a small camera at the end)
• urinary flow study or urodynamic testing

Resources and support

Continence Health Australia has lots of easy-to-read resources about urinary incontinence and good bladder habits.

You can also call the healthdirect helpline on 1800 022 222 (known as NURSE-ON-CALL in Victoria). A registered nurse is available to speak with you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.