Publication:

Pelvic floor muscle training with and without biofeedback in treatment of overactive bladder

Background Overactive bladder (OAB) is a commonly encountered problem in gynaecological practice. It has profound effect on quality of life (QOL), affecting simple daily activities as well. Prevalence rates of OAB in Asians are 53.1%. The first line management of OAB is behaviour modification and pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT). Objective of this study was to comparative assessment of biofeedback assisted PFMT (BAPFMT) versus PFMT alone in treatment of OAB using strength of pelvic floor muscle and QOL before and after treatment.

Methods A prospective comparative randomized controlled trial was conducted to compare the effect of PFMT versus BAPFMT on OAB symptoms over period of 12 weeks. Total of 100 patients fulfilling inclusion and exclusion criteria were selected. Randomization of patients was done into two groups of 50 patients each; half of them were subjected to PFMT and other half to BAPFMT. Appropriate statistical test were applied.

Results At the end of 12 weeks of intervention, there was a significant improvement in pelvic floor muscle strength and QOL in both groups (p<0.001). The improvement in pelvic floor muscle strength was more with BAPFMT; however there was no difference in improvement of QOL between the groups.

Conclusions Addition of biofeedback to PFMT may be a useful adjunct in OAB patients.