Woman, 23, has been unable to wee for THREE YEARS after being struck down with a bizarre syndrome
Woman, 23, has been unable to wee for THREE YEARS after being struck down with a bizarre syndrome
A WOMAN has revealed that she has not urinated for THREE YEARS – after being struck down with a bizarre syndrome. Vikki Black, 23, from Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, thought she simply had cystitis when she first started struggling to go to the toilet.
But she’d actually been hit by ultra-rare Fowler’s Syndrome – urine retention – which has changed her life forever, and seen her unable to wee since October 2014.
Vikki said: “It’s changed my life so much.
“I’m in and out of hospital and can’t do something as simple as wee.”
Environmental health engineer Vikki first began struggling to urinate in late 2014.
Over the course of a few days her symptoms worsened, until eventually she couldn’t wee at all.
On top of this, her stomach swelled dramatically.
She said: “I looked 20 weeks pregnant.
“I was so worried I called my dad and he took me to hospital. I was bursting. I knew I needed to go, I just couldn’t.”
After being raced to nearby Furness General Hospital, Vikki had an emergency catheter inserted into her bladder to drain away 1200mls of urine – more than two pints.
She added: “Usually the bladder holds a maximum amount of 500ml of urine, so that was an insane amount.”
The relief was instant, and Vikki was optimistic that she may have been cured.
But the next day, her tummy swelled once again.
Worried, she returned to the same hospital where another catheter was fitted for what she thought would be three months – but three years on, it remains intact.
She was referred to Manchester Royal Infirmary around a year later, where she underwent a urodynamic test, which involves inserting two small catheters – one in the bladder and one in the rectum.
The bladder is then slowly filled with saline salt water and monitored for any irregular spasms.
Once a patient’s bladder is full, they are asked to pass urine with the catheters in, allowing doctors to gather information on what pressure the bladder muscle generates for a urine flow rate.
It was this procedure that led to Vikki’s official diagnosis of Fowler’s Syndrome in late 2015.
According to the University Of Central London (UCL), the condition, which typically affects women aged in their 20s to 40s, can occur as a result of an operation, or spontaneously – just like with Vikki.
Brave Vikki explained: “It’s so rare that often, when I visit the doctors or hospital, people haven’t heard of it.
“But it has a huge impact.
“Because of the catheter, I’ve had a lot of kidney infections. I’ve probably suffered around 90 infections and been in and out of hospital.
“Just last week I was in Salford Royal Infirmary with another infection. I was given intravenous antibiotics.”
Now, Vikki is hoping to have a type of surgery called sacral nerve stimulation, which is available on the NHS, but she’d prefer to have privately to avoid the waiting list.
The procedure involves using small electrical pulses stimulating the nerves in the lower back which affect bladder control.
Vikki added: “It’s my last hope.
“I’m desperate to go to the loo.”
UCL said: “First described in 1985, Fowler’s Syndrome is a cause of urinary retention (inability to pass water normally) in young women.
“Urinary retention in young women is not common but can be quite debilitating.
“The abnormality lies in the urethral sphincter (the muscle that keeps you continent).
“The problem is caused by the sphincter’s failure to relax to allow urine to be passed normally.
“There is no neurological disorder associated with the condition.”
source: thesun.co.uk
