It works through the kidneys, filters wastes for the blood and excretes them from the body. There are some problems associated with the urinary system. These are:

- Kidney or bladder infection
If the person is experiencing dull pains in lower back and it gets worsen and sometimes accompanied by burning sensation when urinating along with chills and fever, then it could be a kidney or bladder infection. Have a urine test done and keep a watch for sometime and if still persists, seek a medical advice.

- Kidney stone
If a person is experiencing steady pain in one or both testicles spreading to lower back then it could be a kidney stone and an ultra sonography is done and is removed by lithotripsy. Keep a watch for sometime and if still persists, seek a medical advice.

- Bladder infection
If the person is experiencing ache or burning that occurs during intercourse or urination and is also accompanied by discharge and blood then it could be a bladder infection. Keep a watch for sometime and if still persists, seek a medical advice.

- Enlarged prostate
If a person is experiencing poor urine flow, frequent urge to go to toilet in night, feeling of full bladder, traces of blood in urine or semen then it could an enlarged prostate which is benign or prostate cancer which can be confirmed by PSA test or digital rectal exam. Medication or surgery is needed.

The Respiratory System

It allows the oxygen to be breathed in and carbon dioxide to be breathed out. There are some problems associated with the urinary system. These are:

- Asthma
If a person is experiencing wheezing, coughing, tightness in chest, breathlessness and it worsens in night, then it can be asthma in which there is swelling and narrowed in air pathways and proper medications, relievers and prev-enters can be used. Seek medical advice immediately.

- Lung cancer
If a person is experiencing persistent cough, coughing out Blood, breath shortness and difficulty in swallowing then it could be lung cancer which needs medical attention immediately.

- Tuberculosis (TB)
If a person is experiencing exhaustion, night sweats, appetite loss, mild fever, cough often with blood then it could be TB which can be treated with medication. Keep a watch for sometime and seek medical advice.

- Pleurisy
If a person is experiencing pain which worsens while you breathe then it could be pleurisy which is an inflammation of pleura or membrane covering the lungs. Antibiotics can treat this condition.

Causes:
The need to go to the bathroom will change throughout the stages of pregnancy. Sometimes you may feel the need to urinate more frequently. Other times, you feel like you’re back to normal.

- In the first weeks of pregnancy, your body produces a hormone called human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG), which can make you urinate more frequently.
- Your body contains more fluid during pregnancy.
- Your kidneys work harder throughout pregnancy to remove waste products from your body.
- As the uterus grows and rises higher during the second trimester, some women find that they have to urinate as often as before.
- Towards the end of pregnancy, the baby moves down to prepare for childbirth. This increases the pressure on the bladder, causing more frequent urination.
- The added pressure may wake you up several times at night to urinate.
- You can also force some urine to leak out, particularly if the muscles around the urethra are not very strong.

For the first days after birth, you may urinate more often as your body gets rid of excess fluid from the pregnancy. But after a few days, your need to urinate should return to what it was before pregnancy.

Treatment:
Here are some tips for dealing with frequent urination or loss during pregnancy:

Avoid drinks with caffeine.
- Caffeine can make you urinate more frequently.
- Avoid drinks like coffee, tea, colas and other caffeinated beverages that lead to the problem.

Do the Kegel exercises.
- These simple exercises can help stop urine leakage by strengthening the muscles that keep the urethra (the tube through which urine leaves the body) closed. They can even help prepare these muscles for labor and delivery.
- Do these exercises by squeezing the muscles you use to stop urine flow and hold for 10 seconds.
- Do this 10-20 times in a row at least three times a day.

Avoid drinking fluids before bedtime.
- Cut down on night visits to the bathroom, fluid intake should be earlier in the day.
- Reduce the amount you drink in the early evening and night.
- However, be sure to drink adequate amounts of water and juice during the day to ensure that there are robbing your body of vital fluids.

Completely empty the bladder.
- To help prevent leaks, make sure your bladder does not overfill.
- Try not to “hold it” when you feel the need to urinate. This may mean more trips to the bathroom.
- When you urinate, try to lean forward a bit in order to completely empty the bladder. Always empty your bladder before exercising.

Use a sanitary pad or panty shield.
- A pad or panty shield can take unexpected leakage caused by coughing or sneezing.

Causes of Temporary Urinary Incontinence

- Alcohol
- Over-hydration
- Dehydration
- Caffeine
- Bladder Irritation
- Medications
Easily treatable medical conditions also may be responsible for urinary incontinence.
- Urinary tract infection.
- Constipation

Causes of persistent urinary incontinence

Urinary incontinence can also be a persistent condition caused by underlying physical problems or changes, including:
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Changes with ageing
- Hysterectomy
- Painful bladder syndrome
- Prostatitis
- Enlarged prostate
- Prostate Cancer
- Bladder cancer or bladder stones
- Neurological disorders
- Obstruction

Types of Urinary incontinence in men & women

- Stress incontinence: It does not mean emotional stress. It is the leakage of urine during exercise, coughing, sneezing, laughing, walking, lifting heavy objects such as lifting a bag of groceries, rising from a sitting to a standing position, or other body movements that put pressure on the bladder.
- Overflow Incontinence: It results when the bladder is allowed to become so full that it overflows. Urine stream is weak with a frequent or constant dribble.
- Urge Incontinence: In this type of incontinence, an overactive bladder contracts without you wanting it to do so. You may feel as if you can’t wait to reach a toilet. It is found in people suffering from diseases such as diabetes, stroke, dementia, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis.
- Total Incontinence: It occurs when there is a complete loss of bladder control, usually occurring after some form of surgery to the lower urinary tract.
- Functional incontinence: It occurs when a disability stops from reaching the toilet in time for urination even though the urinary tract functions normally.

Risk Factors of Urine Incontinence

- Women are more likely to develop stress incontinence easily than men.
- As you get older, the muscles in your bladder and urethra lose some of their strength.
- The pressure on the bladder is increased if you are overweight.
- A chronic cough associated with smoking can cause episodes of incontinence or aggravate incontinence that has other causes.

- Over-the-counter (OTC) painkillers, such as paracetamol, or ibuprofen, can be taken to reduce discomfort.
- Drinking plenty of water is often recommended as a treatment for cystitis.
- If your symptoms are moderate, or severe, your GP may prescribe a short course of antibiotics. This will usually be in the form of a tablet to be swallowed 2-4 times a day, for three days.
- For a more complicated case of cystitis, such as cystitis with another underlying infection, you may be given antibiotics to take for 5-10 days.

How does a doctor diagnose cystitis?

The diagnosis of cystitis is primarily based on symptoms and signs. Visual appearance of the urine is not helpful. The most important examination of urine is done by chemical testing (dipstick test), which is very quick, and by urine culture where the specimen is sent to a hospital laboratory to grow and examine the bacteria. The specimen must be fresh. It is also important that the woman has separated her labia (lips) during urination, to avoid bacteria from the skin and vagina contaminating the specimen. If there is inflammation, the doctor will identify bacteria and red and white blood cells in the urine using the dipstick test. If this is positive, your doctor can prescribe antibiotics immediately while waiting for further confirmation from the urine culture.

- Drink as much fluid as you can to flush out the system, dilute the urine and reduce any stinging.
- For the first four hours try to drink a pint of water every hour even if the attack starts in the middle of the night.
- Then drink half a pint every two hours for the next eight hours.
- Drink bland fluids such as water, weak tea or fruit squash (avoid orange juice and carbonated drinks).
- Making the urine less acid will reduce any discomfort. Try a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda dissolved in a glass of water or preparations containing citrate.
- Women with high blood pressure or heart trouble should not take either bicarbonate of soda citrate without first consulting their doctor.
- Go to the lavatory as much as you need to, don’t try to ‘hold on’.
- Keep warm and place a well-covered hot water bottle over your tummy or between your thighs. A second one hot water bottle at your lower back may also help.
- Take one or two aspirin or paracetamol tablets for the pain.
- Avoid alcohol and sexual intercourse until you feel better.
- Rest as much as possible.
- Avoid vaginal deodorants and douches, perfumed soaps, bubble bath and talc, these may irritate the urethra. Showering rather than bathing may be helpful.
- Avoid tight trousers or underwear, especially if they’re made from artificial fibres. Choose cotton underwear with stockings and looser clothes such as skirts.
- Wipe from front to back.
- Anything that obstructs or blocks the urinary tract, such as a kidney stone, can lead to repeated attacks of cystitis. Certain tests can detect these conditions. Treating the underlying cause may solve the problem.
- Any damage to the lower back area can affect the nerves connecting to the bladder and make it impossible to empty it completely.
- Change immediately from wet clothes like after swimming.

Bacterial Cystitis

- When bacteria enter the urinary tract and start to multiply, bacterial cystitis can occur.
- Bacteria may enter through sexual intercourse, but the female genital and urinary tract naturally have bacteria that can cause infection.
- There are two primary types of bacterial infections of the bladder: community-acquired bladder infections and hospital-acquired, or nosocomial infections.

Noninfectious Cystitis

- When the bladder becomes inflamed for reasons other than bacteria, and when this happens, a diagnosis of noninfectious cystitis can be made.
- Types of cystitis in this category include drug-induced cystitis, radiation cystitis, foreign-body cystitis and chemical cystitis.
- Drug-induced cystitis occurs when medications irritate your bladder as the drugs are broken down and exit your body.
- Foreign-body cystitis typically occurs in people who have catheters for a period of time, which can lead to bacterial infections or tissue irritation.
- Radiation to the pelvic area, your bladder may become inflamed or irritated, which is radiation cystitis.
- Hypersensitivity to products like bubble bath or feminine hygiene products can cause chemical cystitis.

Eosinophilic Cystitis

- It is a rare form of cystitis that is diagnosed via biopsy.
- The cause of EC is also unknown though it has been triggered in children by certain medications.

Hemorrhagic Cystitis

It can occur as a side effect of cyclophosphamide therapy, and is often prevented by administering mesna.

Symptoms of Cystitis

- A burning, stinging or aching pain when you pass urine.
- A need to pass water very frequently, often only a small amount each time.
- Bloody or cloudy urine (severe cystitis).
- Pain or tenderness in your lower back or lower abdomen (tummy).
These symptoms can also be due to a sexually transmitted infection (STI) such as chlamydia. If you think you may have an STI, visit your GP or a sexual health clinic.

Causes of Cystitis

- When women insert a tampon there is a slight risk of bacteria entering via the urethra.
- When a urinary catheter is changed there may be damage to the area.
- There is a higher incidence of cystitis among women who use the diaphragm for contraception, compared to sexually active women who don’t.
- The patient does not empty his/her bladder completely, creating an environment for bacteria to multiply in the bladder. This is fairly common among pregnant women, and also men whose prostates are enlarged.
- Sexually active women have a higher risk of bacteria entering via the urethra.
- Part of the urinary system may be blocked.
- Other bladder or kidney problems.
- Frequent and/or vigorous sex increases the chances of physical damage or bruising, which in turn makes the likelihood of cystitis developing higher.
- During the menopause women produce less mucus in the vaginal area. This mucus stops the bacteria from multiplying.
- During the menopause the lining of a woman’s urethra gets thinner as her levels of estrogen drop. The thinner the lining becomes, the higher the chances are of infection and damage.
- A woman’s urethra opening is much nearer the anus than a man’s.