Urinary retention is a condition in which the bladder fills up with urine and cannot be emptied, often caused by the development of difficulty in urination. Urinary retention is often categorized as acute or chronic, and the main symptoms are difficulty in urination and bladder distension. Treatment includes timely catheterization under the guidance of a doctor, followed by the need to find the cause of urinary retention and then actively treat it. 1. Urinary retention symptoms. (1) The duration of acute urinary retention is not long, but patients with acute urinary retention have a bladder full of urine that cannot be discharged, are bloated and painful, toss and turn, and may be accompanied by pain or discomfort in the lower abdomen and abdominal distension. (2) Chronic urinary retention has a longer duration. Patients with chronic urinary retention can urinate, but cannot completely empty all the urine in the bladder, resulting in a large amount of residual urine in the bladder. However, it is often overlooked because the symptoms are not obvious. Chronic urinary retention can present with symptoms such as frequent urination: urinating 8 or more times a day; unsmooth urination; weak or interrupted urine flow; obvious urge to urinate but often unable to do so successfully; incomplete urination with the sensation of wanting to urinate after urination; mild and persistent discomfort in the lower abdomen and urinary tract; and a small amount of urine involuntarily spilling out of the urethra when the bladder is overfilled to its maximum capacity. 2. Urinary retention treatment. (1) Acute urinary retention is treated mainly by catheterization, and the cause is sought and treated after the urine is removed. (2) Chronic urinary retention can be controlled by regular self-cleaning catheterization or placement of a retaining urinary catheter to drain the urine. The cause of urinary retention is also treated. It is recommended that the patient go to a regular hospital in time for treatment.