Urinary and Fecal Incontinence due to Stenosis

@reets70 You are bringing up a topic a lot of people don’t think about. Incontinence can happen from spinal cord damage. If this is a new symptom for a patient, that is a change that should be an immediate discussion with a spine specialist. If the nerve cells involved in controlling these functions die from compression, it becomes a permanent problem. That being said, spine surgery may not be a good outcome for an older person. It could leave a patient in a lot of pain and there wouldn’t be a guarantee of fixing the problem.

I have helped my elderly parents in a similar situation, and I know it can be uncomfortable for everyone.

What did your medical providers advise?

Thank you for your kindness. I know it’s a topic that is uncomfortable to discuss, but it’s a real concern. My neurosurgeon said it’s not from my spine issues, usually there would be numbness in the genitalia area. I don’t think I believe him because everything I have read about severe spinal stenosis mentions this (Cauda equina?).I’m very worried that my nerves are damaged and I’m not sure that ablation will be successful.

@reets70 When I had my cervical spine surgery for spinal cord compression, I was having problems emptying my bladder. It would just stop half empty, and I had to force it. At that time, I was seeing my physical therapist who was realigning my neck, and then it was normal again. When I had muscle spasms that shifted my neck vertebrae, I had trouble emptying again and also walked with a limp. I didn't have any other nerve compressions and I didn't have numbness in the saddle area. I did have pains that could be anywhere in my body and that changed with my neck and body position. Those were early symptoms, and if I hadn't had surgery to decompress the spinal cord, it would have progressed to worse symptoms.

Do you have spinal cord or nerve compressions? I'm sure there can be other reasons for incontinence that are not spine related.

I do have nerve compression in my lower lumbar region. I also have cervical stenosis, and now I’m wondering if it’s the cervical nerves that are causing the issues. It could be, so I’ll talk to the neuro about it next week.

Started having issues with bowel incontinence. Thought it might be due to my spine hardware, or spine in general. had a CT myelogram & my spine surgeon said it was not from my spine, he said it must be from Arachnoiditis Just have it sometimes, not all the time. I already have a permanent suprapubic catheter, neurogenic bladder due severe paralysis from MRSA. I am going to look into options, as fecal incontinence as it could ruin a lot. I think i recently saw some device?? for this issue, Will ask my neurologist & find out more. Seems they are developing a lot new technologies & i am not ready to give up all social life just yet. my spine surgeon is fantastic at what he does. But not sure he's up to date on this issue, or arachnoidits in general Bowel incontinence is far more than an inconvenience. Hard to leave the house if you're worried about this situation

ablation usually for pain control. I am a former RN & i agree that not all specialists are up on these issues My spine dr did a CT myelogram & told me my Incontinence not from my spine, but my arachnoiditis. I am having bowel incontinence at times. I am going to ask more questions ... New technology on the market, all the time. I am going to see if there are any treatments for bowel issue. Apparently, a lot of people suffer in silence. It's difficult subject to bring up.

Have you thought about seeing a Urogynecologist? These doctors can help with incontinence/bowel problems. I have scoliosis, no surgery, and have both incontinence and bowel issues. I believe it’s due to my scoliosis, but no matter, the Urogynecologist has helped me immensely.

@babe2004 Thus is a great suggestion. My mom went through some pelvic therapy to try to gain control of her bladder. She’s elderly and wasn’t satisfied with the degree of improvement, so she opted to have a permanent catheter. This needs to be replaced every 4 weeks and she is prone to infections because of it.

Thank you! I will look into it.

@reets70 You are correct that cervical central canal stenosis can be a cause of bowel or bladder incontinence. If you have cervical spinal cord compression in addition to nerve issues from the lumbar area, it seems plausible that those issues may be cumulative. I think taking to a spine specialist is a good idea. There was a member here who had such serious constipation and blockage that his doctors were going to do a colostomy, and he had been unable to walk. He also had bad cervical stenosis and after spine surgery, he improved and avoided the colostomy. After rehab, he started walking again, after spending some years in a wheelchair.