Maximal external electrical stimulation for treatment of neurogenic or non-neurogenic urgency and/or urge incontinence

Maximal electrical stimulation by intravaginal or intra-anal electrodes was used for treatment of 75 patients with complaints of urgency and/or urge incontinence. The patient group consisted of 51 women and 24 men. A neurogenic background was present in 30 of the women who had a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis, in the other 45 patients the pathology was idiopathic in nature. After 3 weeks of maximal electrical stimulation treatment, composed of 15 sessions of 20 minutes duration, 59% of the patients had urodynamic and subjective improvement and an additional 40% only subjective improvement. One patient found no benefit after this treatment. The effect lasted for at least 2 years in 64% of the idiopathic group. In the multiple sclerosis group relapse occurred within about 2 months. Re-treatment of the failures was successful again immediately; the multiple sclerosis patients do need daily home stimulation treatments.