Urinary retention

What it means

Inability to completely empty the urinary bladder during the process of urination.

Urinary retention is the inability of the urinary bladder to empty. The cause may be neurologic or nonneurologic.

Rare diseases that can present with this27

The range is how often this sign appears among people diagnosed with each disease — it is not a probability of having any of them. Many of these signs also occur in common, non-rare conditions. A sign on this page is a conversation to have with a clinician, not a conclusion.

Part of the broader category

Also called: Increased post-void residual urine volume