Leak protection while at work & play
If you’ve experienced episodes of accidental bladder control loss, called urinary incontinence, you may worry about leaks during your daily activities.
To protect against leaks – and to help your feel more secure – there are several options available. Review these incontinence product options to find out what might work for you.
Light leakage
Guards (Men)/Panty liners or pads (Women)
These body-shaped pad inserts absorb light to moderate urinary incontinence. They can be used with a mesh or knit style undergarment or regular underwear for added protection.
Benefits: Discreet, easy to use with the underwear you have now
Mesh or knit pant
To hold pads or liners in place, these reusable and washable undergarments offer light to moderate absorbency.
Benefits: Discreet, like regular underwear
Moderate leakage
These products pull on and off like underwear. They offer moderate to heavy leakage protection.
Benefits: Look and feel like regular underwear
While these incontinence briefs look like underwear, they come on and off with tabs at the waistband. They’re available in a wide range of absorbencies.
Benefits: For people with limited mobility, adult diapers are easier to remove
Belted undergarments
To provide added security and protection for moderate to heavy incontinence, belted undergarments have elastic bands at the sides.
Benefits: Function like briefs and adult diapers, but they’re less bulky
Heavy leakage
Protective underwear (see description above)
Briefs/adult diapers (see description above)
Belted undergarments (see description above)
For severe incontinence, your doctor may recommend using a catheter. The two most common types of internal urinary catheters are intermittent and indwelling (also called Foley catheters). Both are designed with a small tube that is passed through the urethra (the duct which carries urine out of the body) and into the bladder (a sac which holds the urine until it is passed from the body through the urethra). Once in place, internal catheters allow for passage of urine from the bladder into a drainage bag or directly into the toilet.
You are able to insert and remove the catheter yourself to empty your bladder
Benefits: Fewer incidences of urinary tract infections compare to indwelling catheters
Indwelling (Foley) catheter
Your health care provider inserts and removes an indwelling catheter, which stays in place all the time
Benefits: For those with limited mobility or other medical conditions such as spinal cord injury, dementia or multiple sclerosis, it’s a convenient option for managing urinary incontinence.
External urinary catheters and devices
Condom catheter
A male external catheter, also called a condom catheter, fits over the penis like a condom and connected to a drainage bag
Benefits: Doesn’t require insertion into the urethra; non-invasive solution for men without urinary retention or obstruction issues
Female urethral insert
A female urethral insert gently glides into the urethra and creates a soft seal at the bladder neck to prevent stress incontinence. Your doctor will need to fit you for this device and explain how to insert and remove it.
Benefits: Conforms to a woman’s unique shape to help prevent urine leakage without surgery
Stiff ring that’s inserted into the vagina to support bladder muscles and prevent leakage. Your doctor prescribes this device.
Benefits: Prevents urine leakage without surgery, stays in all day