Generalized Sensory Sensitivity in Patients With Urinary Urgency-A LURN II Urinary Urgency Phenotyping Study

Area of Science:

• Urology
• Sensory Neuroscience
• Psychosomatic Medicine

Background:

• Urinary urgency and overactive bladder (OAB) significantly impact quality of life.
• Generalized Sensory Sensitivity (GSS) involves heightened responses to various stimuli.
• The relationship between GSS and OAB is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate generalized sensory sensitivity (GSS) in patients experiencing urinary urgency.
• To compare GSS levels between individuals with and without urinary urgency.
• To explore the correlation between GSS and OAB symptom severity and quality of life.

Main Methods:

• Adults with urinary urgency (cases) and controls without urgency were enrolled in the LURN II Study.
• The Generalized Sensory Sensitivity-Short Form (GSS-SF) questionnaire assessed sensitivity to external and internal stimuli.
• Overactive bladder (OAB) symptom severity and health-related quality of life (HRQL) were measured using OAB-q and LURN SI-29.

Main Results:

• Patients with urinary urgency (617 cases) exhibited significantly higher GSS scores compared to controls (125 cases).
• Cases reported heightened sensitivity to both external environmental stimuli and internal bodily sensations.
• Higher GSS scores correlated positively with OAB symptom severity and negatively with HRQL.

Conclusions:

• Individuals with urinary urgency demonstrate elevated generalized sensory sensitivity (GSS).
• Increased GSS is associated with more severe overactive bladder (OAB) symptoms and diminished quality of life.
• These findings suggest that urinary urgency may, in some patients, stem from a broader sensory processing dysfunction rather than isolated bladder pathology.