How a Man Could Die While Urinating

"When a person gets up quickly in the middle of the night to urinate, the bladder triggers a vagal reflex. This vagal reflex lowers heart rate and blood pressure which could lead to fainting and falling. If during the fall, the person hits his or her head, a brain bleed might happen which could lead to death. The risk is increased if the person is urinating standing up, if the person is dehydrated, or had alcohol."

"Losing consciousness while or after peeing (called micturition syncope) predominantly affects men (approximately 66 to 74 percent) but can also affect women. Micturition syncope can happen at any age, but there are two distinct peak incidences: younger patients with a mean age around 38 to 44 years, often related to alcohol intake (syncope often occurring before midnight) and older patient with a mean age around 65 years (syncope often occurring after midnight or in the early morning). [1]"

"Micturition syncope is a rather benign condition, but the risk of death happens if a person, when fainting, hits his or her head violently on a sharp corner of furniture or on a hard floor, triggering a brain bleed which can lead to death. In older people, fainting and falling can also cause a bone fracture. A hip fracture in an elderly person who lives alone could make it impossible for that person to get up from the floor."

Micturition syncope causes brief loss of consciousness during or after urination due to a vagal reflex triggered by bladder receptors when voiding. The vagal reflex lowers heart rate and blood pressure, producing dizziness, fainting, and falls. Men are affected more often, with peaks in younger adults linked to alcohol and in older adults during the early morning. Standing to urinate, dehydration, and alcohol increase risk. Episodes may occur at any age. Predominant male prevalence ranges around 66–74 percent. Faints can lead to head trauma, brain bleed, hip fracture, prolonged immobility, and death, especially in elderly individuals living alone.

Read at Psychology Today