Tuinbroekie

Everything went fine. Like any hospital test I've had thus far, it was over before I knew it. My prostate is not so large and the passage of the urethra through the prostate was fine. So that might also have helped that the scope went in without pain. They did put some anesthetic gel in my penis some 5 minutes before the urologist came in. The nurse was also talking to me the whole time. I think they do that on purpose to distract and relax you a bit. Unfortunately the urine was quite cloudy. They had to extract the urine through the scope (in total they took around 250 ml out). That was a bit awkward to feel. I could feel that they were pulling the urine out and the bladder had to accommodate. Also the turning of the scope was a bit uncomfortable. The same goes for the transrectal ultrasound. She first entered a finger in my rectum but that wasn't painful at all. The transducer of the ultrasound was bigger but they also put a lot of gel on it. It was a bit uncomfortable when they pushed it in deeper to see the highest part of the prostate. But also this was over before I knew it. My next visit will be an urodynamic test. The prostate is not the problem, most likely the bladder is. The TRUS (transrectal ultrasound) showed that my bladder wall is very thick. That might explain some of my incontinence problems. However to really understand what's going on I'll have to get the UDO. This is a much longer test. The nurse said they take around 1,5 hrs in stead of 10 mins for a TRUS or cystoscopy.

I have an ultrasound scheduled on Friday. It will be a transrectal ultrasound not abdominal, they prefer to do it this way at my hospital because it gives them a better view of the prostate. So I'll be butt-naked and in stirrups. I did however experience something similar when they made an ultrasound of my bladder after voiding. The assistant had to pull my diaper down a bit to take the ultrasound. I wore the Tena Maxi Pants. Actually it also was quite wet. I had a flowmetry test before they took the ultrasound. But to be able to do that they instruct you to come to the hospital with a full bladder. Well that was kind of difficult for me. When I entered the hospital I requested if they could schedule me first, because I already had a lot of urge. They immediately started to prepare for the test, which was nice. But before they could set up the special toilet I voided almost everything in the diaper. That was embarrassing, because the waiting room was full of people and some may have noticed that I had some trouble. However I did get to do the test anyway and thank god I did manage to squeeze out some 300 ml on the toilet. That was enough for the test. The assistant was sweet and felt sorry for me. Because of all this she already knew I was diapered. She didn't say anything about it and was very professional. She helped me to schedule a next appointment (which will be the cystoscopy and the transrectal ultrasound).

Hi Jack, I have mine scheduled on Friday. It won't be a cystoscopy for some treatment - like someone suggested - but for a diagnosis only. My Urologist wants to have a peek in my bladder to find out what may be causing my OAB. The flowmetry showed a disfunctional voiding pattern (start/stop) and low flow rate. My bladder holds about 200 mln after voiding. That's about the amount that starts to cause problems. Also the urine samples showed hematuria and albumin (protein) that should not be in the urine. Blood samples turned out ok. So thank god no kidney trouble... Right after the cystoscopy she'll do a transrectal ultrasound on me to check the prostate. They want to check the size any see if there are any strictures, calcifications or lesions. I'm quite confident that there aren't any serious issues like bladder or prostate cancer. However I do worry about the procedure itself. Both the cystoscopy and the transrectal ultrasound worry me, I've seen videos and it does seem painful. They'll only use some gel on me, nothing else. So I'm very curious how yours went...

Make sure you get the right one: Length min. 33cm if you are male, diameter I would probably start with CH12 or CH14, balloon size I would go for a smaller size: 10 ml to reduce the chance of bladder spasms. Also you'll need a set for inserting of the foley catheter (that will comprise of a syrinch for in/deflating the balloon, sterile gloves, lubricant, etc.). You may also want to look at pre-lubricated catheters like the Hollister VaPro Pocket Plus or the Coloplast Speedcath Flex. Nelaton are the ones with a normal tip. Tiemann have a special tip to pass the enlarged prostate more easily. There are also flex tips (Coloplast) - however I find those a less comfortable to use. Pre lubricated intermittent caths are simple to use but do give you the feeling of inserting and having a cath in. Of course, you can't keep those in for long. One thing to note is that having the cath in you don't feel the urine coming out. It's just the diaper that gets wetter and needs changing after some time. I know there are people that have made some holes in the catheter tube (at about 8-10 cm below the tip). That way the urine passes the bladder sphincter freely but the urine will flow down the urethra outside the cath tube to some degree. That may give you some extra sensation. I haven't tried any of this though - and of course everything is at your own risk. I just use the intermittent caths to reduce retention because of an enlarged prostate...

The Tena stretch seems an interesting diaper. The "one tape" design appeals to me. However I haven't seen these on offering in Europe anywhere

Yes, sorry. I'm in Europe (the Netherlands to be precise). In Europe we have different brands and I read somewhere that there are differences between the European and US diapers from well known global brands like Tena and Attends. So I'm in Europe. Most common brands we have here are: Tena, Abena, Attends, Molicare (Hartmann), Absorin, Seni and Depend. The first four are what you can call 'premium' medical brands here. Absorin is cheaper, but also good and so is Seni. Depend used to be a big name, but I can only order male guards and 'underwear' from them. There must be more brands, but this is what I can order at the online pharmacy.

Looks interesting indeed. However I'm not in the US, so I can't order these

PMD is Post Micturition Dribble. This is when you experience a loss of urine after going to the toilet. Sometimes it comes 5-10 min later, usually when you sit down or move, cough, laugh. With me, it started with just a few drops, but increased over time to the point when you have wet spots on your pants that everyone can see.

I leak quite a lot during the day and usually get away with a decent pull-up (Tena's, Attends or Abena's - of which the Abena's are the best for me). I do however prefer to wear a regular tape on diaper for the better fit and more security, but want to be able to use the bathroom when I can make it. Now that the weather is getting hotter I was looking at diapers that have breathable sides or better yet have a more open design on the sides. I don't like the flex models that much as they lack the snug fit and security (than I would prefer the pull-up for its ease of use). There are some designs that seem interesting, but I wonder if any of you have experience with them. I was looking at the Molicare Premium Elastics, Attends adjustable, Attends Active Slip or even the old Depend Classic (though I think it is probably too light for me). Does anyone have experience with these? Are they as good as the regular four tape diapers?

I think I've experienced what you describe a couple of times. Also in my case there was no loss of urine. It's been quite some time ago (years), but I do remember it was sort of painful. It felt like a valve opened or something. Not pleasant at all and I had a sore feeling for sometime afterwards. Lately I've been suffering from PMD and that has been worsening over time to a point I need incontinence pads during the day and also some protection at night. I don't know if these "clicking" spasms (or whatever they are) are related to PMD. I hope you're not down that route...