Mayo Clinic: Men’s Health Center

Overview

BEHAVIORAL TECHNIQUES

In patients with mild leakage you doctor may recommend conservative treatments such as:

Bladder training, to delay urination after you get the urge to go. You may start by trying to hold off for 10 minutes every time you feel an urge to urinate. The goal is to lengthen the time between trips to the toilet until you're urinating only every 2.5 to 3.5 hours.

Fluid and diet management, to regain control of your bladder. You may need to cut back on or avoid alcohol, caffeine or acidic foods. Reducing liquid consumption, losing weight or increasing physical activity also can ease the problem.

Scheduled toilet trips, to urinate every two to four hours rather than waiting for the need to go.

 

ABSORBENT PADS AND CATHETERS:

If medical treatments can't completely eliminate your incontinence, you can try products that help ease the discomfort and inconvenience of leaking urine:

Pads and protective garments. Most products are no more bulky than normal underwear and can be easily worn under everyday clothing. Men who have problems with dribbles of urine can use a drip collector — a small pocket of absorbent padding that's worn over the penis and held in place by close-fitting underwear.

Catheter. Rarely, your doctor may recommend a soft tube (catheter) be put into your your bladder to drain the urine.  This form of treatment is usually reserved for men who are in very poor health and is reserved as a “treatment of last resort.”  

Penile Clamp:  This is a clamp or device that fits tightly on your penis to tighten down on it to prevent the leakage of urine.  For most men, this treatment is only used until a more definitive or final treatment can be performed.  Usually, this device can cause pain on the penis and has to be removed frequently to prevent complications such as irritation to the skin or injury to the penis itself.