Urinary incontinence is something many individuals consider to be a normal part of aging – rightly so, as it affects as many as 17 to 25 million Americans, approximately 85 percent of whom are women. While urinary incontinence is very common, what many women don’t realize is that it is not usually something that they have to “put up” with; there are many treatment options available.
There are four types of urinary incontinence: stress, urge, mixed and overflow. Depending on the type of urinary incontinence you have, the treatment options can range from non-invasive therapies to minimally invasive surgical procedures. The InTone device is a new treatment option for women who suffer from stress, urge or mixed incontinence. By combining gentle muscle stimulation with pelvic floor training exercises, the InTone device can stop bladder leakage without medication or surgery. The InTone device is used on a regular basis in the comfort and privacy of your own home.
The InTone device helps strengthen your pelvic floor in two ways: gentle muscle stimulation and voice-guided pelvic floor exercises. Gentle muscle stimulation strengthens the pelvic floor by helping stop the spasms of the bladder muscle. If you have a strong pelvic floor, you can do things like cough, sneeze, laugh or run without leakage. Calming spasms of the bladder muscle allows you to “hold it” longer and avoid frequent trips to the bathroom.
The muscle stimulation will be customized under your physician’s supervision to ensure proper muscle activation. The muscle stimulation delivers a gentle electrical current directly to your pelvic floor muscles and has been proven to be an effective treatment for bladder leakage.
The InTone device also features voice-guided pelvic floor training exercises. The InTone device will talk you through your entire 12 minute session. The pelvic floor exercises are performed by contracting your muscles as directed. The InTone device uses an illuminated bar graph so that you know the strength of your contractions. The bar graph will also help guide you toward doing your exercises correctly.
Dr. Lonny Green, urologist and director of Virginia Women’s Continence Center, specializes in treatment for urinary incontinence and he is also a Certified InTone Specialist. Scheduling an appointment with Dr. Green is the first step in determining whether the InTone device is an appropriate treatment solution for your incontinence. If you’re interested in learning more about the InTone device or the other treatment options for incontinence, we recommend that you schedule an appointment with Dr. Green through our secure patient portal or by calling 804.288.4084.
