Neurobiology of Incontinence

The proceedings of a symposium on the neurobiology of incontinence held at the CIBA Foundation, London, 11-13 October 1989. The reports address the topic of central neural control in relation to urinary and bowel tract dysfunction.

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Neurobiology of Incontinence Chairman: C. D. Marsden 1990 Incontinence is the loss of voluntary control over the bladder or bowel and is a very common and often devastating problem which goes largely unacknowledged. This major clinical condition requires increased attention from basic research workers if the underlying mechanisms are to be elucidated. The symposium was therefore designed to bring together neuroscientists working on the basic biology of the bladder and bowel and clinicians dealing with the various clinical manifestations of urinary and faecal incontinence. The resulting volume is unusual in its wide coverage, it includes chapters on the innervation and functional anatomy of the urinary tract and anorectal region and on the central neural control of these two areas. Other papers discuss the functional assessment of the anorectum and bladder, stress urinary incontinence and the neurogenic hypothesis of incontinence, detrusor - external sphincter dyssynergia, and pharmacological and surgical approaches to the treatment of urinary and faecal incontinence. Treatment by means of surgically implanted prostheses is also considered.
The aim of the symposium is to stimulate scientists to enter a challenging research area in order to undertake the further basic investigations into mechanisms which would lead to advances in the understanding, treatment and - above all - prevention of a distressing and prevalent condition. Neurophysiologists, neurologists, neuroanatomists, neuropharmacologists, urologists, gynaecologists, colorectal surgeons, nurses, and biomedical engineers concerned with prosthesis design, will all find this book of interest to them. Other Ciba Foundation Symposia: No 134 Research and the ageing population Chairman: T. Franklin Williams 1988 ISBN 0 471 91420 7 No 138 Plasticity of the neuromuscular system Chairman: A. J. Buller 1987 ISBN 0 471 91902 0 No 152 The biology of nicotine dependence Chairman: L. L. Iversen 1990 ISBN 0 471 92688 4