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Beaumont Health System News. Providing relief from bladder and pelvic pain issues; Beaumont urologists pioneers in neuromodulation. Posted 8/12/2015. Based on Research findings presented at the International Neuromodulation Society’s 12th World Congress, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; June 6-11, 2015.

Several studies presented at a recent medical congress suggest that a technique known as neuromodulation can be successful in treating bladder issues and alleviating pelvic pain. Neuromodulation involves the electrical stimulation of different nerves (pudendal, sacral and tibial), and has previously been shown to be effective for a variety of urological conditions. In these latest reports, investigators evaluated the role of neuromodulation in specific patient populations. One of the studies challenges the long-held belief that a body mass index (BMI) less than 30 is needed to ensure a good outcome; while patients with a BMI over 30 did have higher rates of reoperation, the overall outcomes and complication rates were unchanged, suggesting overweight patients may derive similar benefit from the procedure. Likewise, a second study challenged the belief that patients with smaller bladder capacity won’t benefit from neuromodulation; in fact, the success rate was equal and bladder size didn’t seem to impact the outcome. A third study showed that alternative neuromodulation therapy was successful among patients with bladder issues that did not respond to neuromodulation of the sacral nerve. Greater than 90% of these patients had a benefit from pudendal neuromodulation, which involves attaching a small electrode to the pudendal nerve, which is found in the pelvis.