Acupuncture on Post-Stroke Overactive Bladder

Current practice in management of OAB is quite limited. Acupuncture, which is a major treatment modality of traditional Chinese medicine, has also claimed to have favourable therapeutic effect on OAB. Previous study found that acupuncture at the BL-33 point was effective for controlling the overactive bladder. Although acupuncture has been shown to be effective in treating OAB, there has been no randomized controlled trial examining the efficacy of acupuncture on patients with post-stroke. Given the high incidence of OAB in post-stroke patients, potentially effective alternative treatments should be investigated.

Inclusion criteria

• Chinese aged 18 or above
• Patient suffering from first ever stroke or recurrent stroke with no urinary symptom in previous episode(s);
• Patient with classic symptoms, i.e. urgency, urinary frequency or urge incontinence and Overactive Bladder Symptom Score (OABSS) score ≥3 and the urgency item rated as at least 2-point;
• Not taking any medication for OAB
• Able to communicate
• No current acupuncture or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation treatment

Exclusion criteria

• Urinary retention with post-void urinary volume > 100ml;
• Current urinary tract infection;
• Preexisting history of OAB or bladder outlet obstruction or underactive bladder;
• Significant cognitive impairment with MMSE < or =19;
• Coexisting Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, spinal cord disorder or progressive neurological disease such as multiple sclerosis;
• Active skin lesion or open wound over the needle placement areas;
• Having valvular heart defects, severe cardiac diseases, or bleeding disorders,
• Being fitted with any implanted electrical device such as pacemaker, defibrillator, or brain stimulation;
• Pregnant;
• Malignancies at the sites of selected acupoints;
• Receiving acupuncture treatment 1 month before baseline.