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I spent last Friday in the emergency room. I had been having trouble emptying my bladder and called the specialist's office for help. I am an elderly man, who like most my age, has an enlarged prostate that affects flow. I had had anesthesia and been taking pain killers and muscle relaxers -- all known to cause urinary retention -- for several days. So, the most likely cause(s) were obvious. Of course, I would have needed a short exam and perhaps a handheld ultrasound to check the fluid level in my bladder, but this was not an emergency. However, they told me this problem had nothing to do with neurology, was potentially serious, and sent me to the ER with instructions to contact a urologist afterwards. They had never contacted my GP about my history, and I'll bet my house there would be no interface with a urologist if I were to use one.