By Dr. Fowad Shahzad Warraich

What is Polyuria?

Polyuria is defined as the passage of excessive volumes of urine. This is usually in excess of 3 liters a day. Polyuria is a very common condition and is caused by excessive fluid consumption (known as polydipsia). It is one of the most significant symptoms of both, type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Excessive urination will lead to an incessant need to replace the fluids lost. This will result in excessive fluid consumption, which creates a vicious cycle. This can lead to severe dehydration and even kidney damage.

What is the difference between Nocturia and Pollakiuria?

Nocturia and Pollakiuria are two different variants of Polyuria. Pollakiuria is a manifestation of Polyuria during the day. In this, excessive urination during the day becomes very common to experience.

On the other hand, Nocturia is the opposite of what Pollakiuria is. Nocturia, as the name suggests, means it is a variation of Polyuria where you have to get up to urinate multiple times during the night. Excessive urination can ruin the sleep of many people and cause other sleep-related issues.

What are the risk factors associated with Polyuria?

Polyuria has been linked with several risk factors, such as Diabetes mellitus. Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes can cause excessive urination. Other factors include kidney diseases where kidney health becomes compromised. Excessive consumption of alcohol and coffee can also have an effect. Hypercalcemia, the condition where your body has too much calcium, inhibits the production of ADH (Antidiuretic Hormone) which can also affect urination, while Cushing’s Syndrome and Liver disease have their own impact. Some medicines like Calcium channel blockers, Diuretics, SSRIs, and Lithium have also been shown to impact urination volume.

What kind of health risks are associated with Polyuria?

There are some health risks associated with Polyuria that can signal health problems such as bladder infection, which can become an issue in both adults and children. It can also be a signal to interstitial nephritis, which is the disease where your kidneys are forcefully expelling more fluids than necessary. It can also be indicative of kidney stones, which can become seriously troubling later on. And psychogenic polydipsia and diabetes are also very big indications. Other than that, in some rarer cases, it can be indicative of sickle cell anaemia, which is a very severe disease. It can also signal an enlarged prostate and even certain kinds of cancer. This is why it is highly recommended that if you or someone you know is suffering from Polyuria, then a Polyuria clinic is visited as soon as possible.