Frequent urination, or urinary frequency (sometimes called pollakiuria), is the need to

urinate Urination is the release of urine from the bladder through the urethra in placental mammals, or through the cloaca in other vertebrates. It is the urinary system's form of excretion. It is also known medically as micturition, voiding, ure ...

more often than usual.

Diuretic A diuretic () is any substance that promotes diuresis, the increased production of urine. This includes forced diuresis. A diuretic tablet is sometimes colloquially called a water tablet. There are several categories of diuretics. All diuretics ...

s are medications that increase urinary frequency. Nocturia is the need of frequent urination at night. The most common cause of this condition for women and children is a

urinary tract infection A urinary tract infection (UTI) is an infection that affects a part of the urinary tract. Lower urinary tract infections may involve the bladder (cystitis) or urethra (urethritis) while upper urinary tract infections affect the kidney (pyel ...

. The most common cause of urinary frequency in older men is an

enlarged prostate Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), also called prostate enlargement, is a noncancerous increase in size of the prostate gland. Symptoms may include frequent urination, trouble starting to urinate, weak stream, inability to urinate, or lo ...

. Frequent urination is strongly associated with frequent incidents of urinary urgency, which is the sudden need to urinate. It is often, though not necessarily, associated with

urinary incontinence Urinary incontinence (UI), also known as involuntary urination, is any uncontrolled leakage of urine. It is a common and distressing problem, which may have a significant effect on quality of life. Urinary incontinence is common in older women ...

and

polyuria Polyuria () is excessive or an abnormally large production or Frequent urination, passage of urine (greater than 2.5 L or 3 L over 24 hours in adults). Increased production and passage of urine may also be termed as diuresis. Polyuria often appe ...

(large total volume of urine). However, in other cases, urinary frequency involves only normal volumes of urine overall.

Definition

The normal number of times varies according to the age of the person. Among young children, urinating 8 to 14 times each day is typical. This decreases to 6–12 times per day for older children, and to 4–6 times per day among teenagers.

Causes

The most common causes of frequent urination are: *

interstitial cystitis Interstitial cystitis (IC), a type of bladder pain syndrome (BPS), is chronic pain in the Urinary bladder, bladder and pelvic floor of unknown cause. Symptoms include urinary urgency, feeling the need to urinate right away, urinary frequency, ...

urethral The urethra (: urethras or urethrae) is the tube that connects the urinary bladder to the urinary meatus, through which placental mammals urinate and ejaculate. The external urethral sphincter is a striated muscle that allows voluntary control ...

inflammation or infection * vaginal inflammation or infection. Less common causes of frequent urination are: *

alcoholism Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion characterised by an unpleasant state of inner wikt:turmoil, turmoil and includes feelings of dread over Anticipation, anticipated events. Anxiety is different from fear in that fear is defined as the emotional response ...

bladder cancer Bladder cancer is the abnormal growth of cells in the bladder. These cells can grow to form a tumor, which eventually spreads, damaging the bladder and other organs. Most people with bladder cancer are diagnosed after noticing blood in thei ...

caffeine Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant of the methylxanthine chemical classification, class and is the most commonly consumed Psychoactive drug, psychoactive substance globally. It is mainly used for its eugeroic (wakefulness pr ...

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

* pregnancy *

psychiatric medication A psychiatric or psychotropic medication is a psychoactive drug taken to exert an effect on the chemical makeup of the brain and nervous system. Thus, these medications are used to treat mental illnesses. These medications are typically made of ...

s such as

clozapine Clozapine, sold under the brand name Clozaril among others, is a psychiatric medication and was the first atypical antipsychotic to be discovered. It is used primarily to treat people with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder who have ...

radiation therapy Radiation therapy or radiotherapy (RT, RTx, or XRT) is a therapy, treatment using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of treatment of cancer, cancer therapy to either kill or control the growth of malignancy, malignant cell (biology), ...

to the

pelvis The pelvis (: pelves or pelvises) is the lower part of an Anatomy, anatomical Trunk (anatomy), trunk, between the human abdomen, abdomen and the thighs (sometimes also called pelvic region), together with its embedded skeleton (sometimes also c ...

* brain or nervous system diseases *

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

tumor A neoplasm () is a type of abnormal and excessive growth of tissue. The process that occurs to form or produce a neoplasm is called neoplasia. The growth of a neoplasm is uncoordinated with that of the normal surrounding tissue, and persists ...

in the pelvis *

kidney stones Kidney stone disease (known as nephrolithiasis, renal calculus disease, or urolithiasis) is a crystallopathy and occurs when there are too many minerals in the urine and not enough liquid or hydration. This imbalance causes tiny pieces of cr ...

Diagnosis and treatment

Diagnosis of the underlying cause requires a careful and thorough evaluation. Treatment depends on the underlying cause or condition.

References

External links

{{Medicine Urinary incontinence Symptoms and signs: Urinary system Urology

Definition

Causes

Diagnosis and treatment

See also

References

External links