Few effective treatments are available for managing stress urinary incontinence, which is reported to affect nearly half of all women at some point in their lifetime. In a multicenter study, researchers compared the effect of using electroacupuncture or sham electroacupuncture in reducing urine leakage in women with this type of urinary incontinence.

A total of 504 women, ranging in age from 40 to 75 years, who reported involuntary urine leakage upon effort, exertion, sneezing, or coughing were randomly assigned to receive either electroacupuncture or sham electroacupuncture. Participants received three treatment sessions each week for six consecutive weeks.

The primary outcome was a change from baseline in the amount of urine leakage measured by the one-hour pad test at week 6. The test was performed according to International Continence Society instructions: generally, patients wore a preweighed pad; drank 500 mL water in 15 minutes; and performed various strenuous activities, including coughing, running, and going up and down stairs.

The researchers found that the reduction in the amount of urine leakage was greater in the electroacupuncture group than in the sham electroacupuncture group (-9.9 g versus -2.6 g; mean difference, 7.4 g). A greater proportion of women in the electroacupuncture group had a reduction of at least 50% in the amount of urine leakage at week 6, which was considered a clinical improvement. There were also greater decreases in the number of incontinence episodes during a 72-hour period in the electroacupuncture group. The electroacupuncture group also reported greater improvement in the severity of stress urinary incontinence symptoms and therapeutic effects. Treatment-related adverse effects were mild in both groups.

An accompanying editorial notes that acupuncture, like behavioral interventions, may be worth exploring before surgery is considered in women with stress urinary incontinence.

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