Lower urinary tract dysfunction and stroke

Lower urinary tract dysfunction is very frequent during the acute phase of stroke. In the majority of cases, it resolves over the months following the acute neurological event. A review of the literature does not identify any chronic urinary disorders specific to post-stroke, except in very particular cases (spinal cord infarction, frontal stroke, etc.). However, there appears to be a high incidence of nonspecific voiding disorders, such as urinary incontinence related to urgency-frequency syndrome or nocturia. In particular these disorders complicate the management of lower urinary tract obstructive disorders in these frail patients. Urologists must be familiar with these disorders in order to evaluate these patients particularly carefully before proposing treatments, especially surgery, which appears to achieve much less favourable results, especially functional results, than in the general population.