FRIDAY, Nov. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Clinicians should consider bladder rupture as a potential cause of abdominal pain in women who report binge drinking, according to an article published in the Nov. 10 issue of BMJ.
M.D. Dooldeniya, of Pinderfields Hospitals in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, U.K., and colleagues report on three cases of alcohol-related bladder rupture in young women, aged 24, 32 and 37.
All three patients presented with symptoms of lower abdominal pain that occurred following a 24- to 72-hour history of heavy alcohol intake. In one case a fall was reported. Bladder rupture was confirmed either with cystography or during exploratory surgery. All three women required surgical repair of the bladder. The researchers report that bladder rupture has been described in women, but is usually related to pelvic trauma or neuropathic bladder. The authors postulate that the diuretic effect of alcohol, coupled with dulled sensation from alcohol, led to bladder rupture.
"Alcohol consumption increases the volume of urine held within the bladder and dulls the senses such that the patient has a reduced urge to void despite the increased bladder volume. Minor trauma, such as from a fall, will further increase the pressure and can cause rupture," they write. "We suggest that with the increase in alcohol consumption in women today, the complications previously seen only in men should now also be considered."
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