Renal & Urology / Urinary Retention

Question 1

What is urinary retention?

Answer 1

The inability to voluntarily urinate, usually accompanied by intense discomfort

Question 2

What is a postvoid residual (PVR) and how is it typically measured?

Answer 2

• PVR is the amount of urine left in the bladder after urination.
• It may be measured with a bladder scan (pelvic ultrasound) or catheter and done alone or in conjunction with other urodynamic testing.

Question 3

A measurement of how many milliliters or more is an abnormal PVR?

Answer 3

100 mL

Question 4

What causes of urinary retention are seen in both men and women?

Answer 4

• Obstruction (calculi, mass, fecal impaction, strictures, contractures, foreign bodies, edema, abscess)
• urogenital infection or inflammation (herpes simplex, cystitis)
• neurogenic bladder (transverse myelitis, spinal surgery, stroke)
• urogenital trauma
• psychologic disturbance

Question 5

What causes urinary retention in men?

Answer 5

• Penile pathology causing obstruction
• inflammation, and/or pain (balanitis, meatal stenosis, phimosis, constricting bands)
• prostate disease (benign prostatic hyperplasia, prostate cancer, prostatitis)

Question 6

What is the most common cause of urinary retention in men?

Answer 6

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)

Question 7

What causes urinary retention in women?

Answer 7

• Organ prolapse (cystocele, rectocele, uterine prolapsed)
• gynecological masses (tumors, cysts)
• infectious or inflammatory vulvovaginal lesions (vaginal lichen planus, vaginal lichen sclerosis, vaginal pemphigus, herpes simplex)
• obstetrical complications

Question 8

By what mechanism can infectious or inflammatory vulvovaginal lesions cause urinary retention?

Answer 8

Painful urination and urethral edema