The urinary bladder has 2 bodily functions.
1. To store urine produced by the kidneys
2. To empty the urine from the body through the urethra
We develop the ability to decide when it is socially appropriate to empty our bladder as our brain develops. Once the bladder is filled to a certain volume, we will feel the need to empty the bladder, also known as urgency.
When a patient presents to us for bothersome urgency with and without incontinence, the first thing that we would want to rule out would be urinary tract infection.
Other causes would be bladder stone or distal ureteric stones. The presence of these stones irritates the bladder and make the patient have to urge to empty the bladder.
Another cause would be bladder tumors as these tumors likewise would irritate the bladder.
Once we have ruled out stones and bladder tumors that need active intervention, the next most common cause would be overactive bladder.
The important thing to note is if you have urgency associated with blood in the urine, a trip down to the urologist is warranted.
