Sacral neuromodulation for the treatment of bladder dysfunction

S3 nerve root neuromodulation is becoming an accepted therapy for individuals afflicted with lower urinary tract symptoms, such as idiopathic urinary urge incontinence, frequency, urgency, and urinary retention, who fail current standard therapies. This patient population is difficult to treat, and this therapy offers an option that can restore quality of life to these individuals. While the precise pathophysiologic mechanisms underlying these voiding symptoms is unknown based on the physiology of bladder function, it is logical to conclude that they relate to some aberration of the neuromuscular apparatus of the bladder and/or its outlet (the urethra). These pathophysiologic defects are not overtly manifested outside the lower urinary tract because these patients routinely do not have any apparent neurologic deficits. The fact that S3 neuromodulation can clinically improve these lower urinary tract symptoms would support the notion that the neural regulation of the bladder is somehow altered in these patients. This paper presents a review of the current knowledge regarding sacral neuromodulation in treatment of non-neurogenic voiding dysfunction.