Urine and
Bowel Management
With Spinal Cord Injury and Spina Bifida
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Most persons with spinal cord injury or spina bifida do not have normal bladder
or bowel control (control for peeing and shitting). This loss of control can be
inconvenient, embarrassing, and cause social and emotional difficulties. Also, the
loss of control can cause skin problems and dangerous urinary infections. For these
reasons, it is important to learn ways to stay clean, dry, and healthy. Most of the
methods are not difficult, so children should be able to do it themselves. This will help
them feel more self-reliant.
URINE MANAGEMENT
The main goals of urine management are:
1. to prevent urinary infection, and
2. self-care in staying as dry as possible.
Prevention of urinary infection is extremely important. Infections of the urinary
system (bladder and kidneys) are very common in both spinal cord injury and spina
bifida, and are one of the main causes of early death. Therefore, any method used
for self-care or staying dry must also help prevent urinary infections. Make every effort
to prevent germs from getting into the bladder. Keeping clean is essential. Also, it is
important to empty the bladder regularly as completely as possible. If some urine stays
in the bladder, bacteria will grow in it and cause infection.
The ideal method of urine control empties the bladder completely
and in a clean, regular, easy, and self-reliant way.
Different methods work best for different persons—depending mostly on what ‘type’
of bladder a person has. We discuss this on the next page.
THE URINARY SYSTEM
The kidneys take waste from the
blood, producing urine (pee).
The ureters carry the urine to the
bladder.
The bladder is a bag that stretches
to store the urine and empties it
when it gets full.
The urine passes from the bladder
through the ‘urethra’ and comes
out through the penis in boys and
through a small opening between
the lips of the vagina in girls.