One treatment you might not have considered for your overactive bladder is acupuncture. Several studies show that this ancient Chinese form of medicine has promise for treating some types of urinary incontinence.
Acupuncture, which has been practiced in various forms throughout Asia for thousands of years, is based on a very different philosophy than Western medicine. The traditional Chinese view of health and well-being is based on a universal life force or energy, called chi or qi, that flows through the human body along pathways called meridians. When meridians are blocked, according to this view, illness or pain can occur. Acupuncture seeks to clear these pathways. According to the National Health Interview Survey in 20007, more than 3 million people in the U.S. had used acupuncture in the previous year.
In acupuncture, practitioners insert extremely thin needles at specific points on your body, depending on what ailment they are working to heal. Some people also receive acupuncture as a way to promote overall well-being or for relaxation.
According to the Vanderbilt Evidence-Based Practice Center, acupuncture, unlike reflexology and hypnosis, has shown early evidence of benefit for those with overactive bladder.
One clinical trial by researchers at Oregon Health and Science Unversity, published in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology, compared acupuncture for bladder control with a placebo acupuncture, designed to promote relaxation. While the placebo group showed some improvement, those who received bladder control acupuncture once a week for four weeks "had significant improvements in bladder capacity, urgency, frequency, and quality-of-life scores as compared with women who received placebo acupuncture treatments," the researchers noted.
Another small-scale study of 9 women, aged 44 to 66, carried out by University of Pittsburgh researchers, also compared true acupuncture with "sham" acupuncture as a treatment for urinary incontinence in women. Participants received twice-a-week treatments for three months. The real acupuncture group had a 63 percent reduction in daytime accidents after one week and 67 percent reduction after four weeks, on average, compared to a 19 percent reduction for the sham group after one week and 16 percent after four weeks.
In case studies, men and women whose lack of bladder control is due to multiple sclerosis have also found relief from acupuncture.
Acupuncture, if performed by a skilled practitioner, is a very low risk treatment. It also is not painful, despite the needles. If not done properly, the concern is infection from needle reuse or puncture of an organ. Most states now license acupuncturists. If you are looking for someone to do acupuncture, be sure to check their credentials and training.
It's advisable to go to your doctor, not an acupuncturist, to be diagnosed. Once you know the cause of your incontinence, you and your doctor can discuss treatment options.