Bladder outlet obstruction

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Female urinary tract

Kidney anatomy

Kidney - blood and urine flow

Male urinary tract

BOO; Lower urinary tract obstruction; Prostatism

The symptoms of bladder outlet obstruction may vary. The most common symptoms experienced include:

• Slow urinary flow
• Delayed onset of urination (urinary hesitancy)
• Inability to urinate (acute urinary retention)
• Urinary stream starts and stops (urinary intermittency)
• Urinary tract infection
• Abdominal pain
• Pain on urination (dysuria)
• Frequent urination
• Continuous feeling of a full bladder

If bladder outlet obstruction is suspected, your health care provider will take a thorough history of your problems and perform a physical exam. On physical exam, your provider may find one or more of the following possible causes:

• Distended bladder
• Enlarged prostate (men)
• Cystocele (women)
• Abdominal mass

In addition to a physical exam your provider may order a variety of tests which may include:

• Serum chemistries to reveal kidney damage
• Ultrasound to locate the blockage of urine is, and find out completely the bladder is emptied
• IVP to locate the blockage is
• Urinalysis to look for blood or infection
• Urine culture to show an infection
• Uroflow to determine how fast the urine flows out
• Urodynamic testing -- a more sophisticated way of seeing how much urine flow is blocked and how well the bladder contracts
• Cystoscopy and retrograde urethrogram (x-ray to look for urethral narrowing)

Review Date: 06/13/2006
Reviewed By: Neil D. Sherman, MD, Urologist, Essex County, NJ. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.