The efficacy and safety of electroacupuncture was compared to those of sham electroacupuncture for the treatment of postmenopausal women with stress urinary incontinence (SUI).
This study was a secondary analysis of a multicenter, randomized controlled trial that recruited 504 women with SUI and randomized 349 postmenopausal women to receive 18 treatment sessions of electroacupuncture or sham electroacupuncture over 6 weeks, with a 24-week follow-up assessment. Treatment response was defined as a 50% or greater reduction in urine leakage, as measured by a 1-h pad test at week 6.
Of the 349 randomized women, 332 completed the study. The response rate was 61.0% in the electroacupuncture group compared to 18.9% in the sham electroacupuncture group (difference 42.5%; 95% confidence interval, 33.3-51.7; p < 0.001). After 6 weeks of treatment, the mean 72-h urinary incontinence episode frequency, proportion of participants with at least a 50% decrease in mean 72-h incontinence episode frequency, participant-reported SUI severity, International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-Short Form scores, and participants' self-evaluation of therapeutic effects improved in both groups, with significant between-group differences. Treatment-related adverse events occurred in 2.1% of women during the 6-week treatment.
Electroacupuncture may effectively and safely relieve urinary incontinence symptoms and improve quality of life in postmenopausal women with SUI.
World journal of urology. 2018 Oct 13 [Epub ahead of print]
Weiming Wang, Yan Liu, Shaoxin Sun, Baoyan Liu, Tongsheng Su, Jing Zhou, Zhishun Liu
Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Guang'an Men Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, No.5 Beixiange St., Xicheng District, Beijing, China., Institute of Basic Research in Clinical Medicine, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China., Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Shaanxi Province Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Xi'an, China., Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Guang'an Men Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, No.5 Beixiange St., Xicheng District, Beijing, China. .