Acupuncture for Urinary Incontinence

Urinary incontinence affects nearly 40 million Americans, more than twice as many women as men. Yet very few people visit the doctor for it. The majority suffer this awkward problem in silence. Those who do seek help are usually advised to practice Kegel exercises, which are recommended for stress incontinence (leakage caused by coughing, sneezing, laughing, or straining). However, Kegels are generally not helpful for urge incontinence, when the bladder has spasms and suddenly voids itself.

Fortunately, recent studies suggest there is an effective therapy for both types of incontinence: acupuncture. In a Swedish study, 15 older women showed significant improvement in both subjective and objective measurements (grams of leakage) after 12 acupuncture treatments. Japanese researchers also found that an average of 7 treatments completely controlled urge incontinence in more than half of the men and women they studied. Furthermore, the patients also experienced a significant increase in bladder capacity.

Recommendation
To schedule and appointment for acupuncture treatment at the Whitaker Wellness Institute, contact a Patient Services Representative at (800) 488-1500.

Reference
J Auton Nerv Syst 2000;79:173-80; Nippon Hinyokika Gakkai Zasshi 1995;86:1514-9.


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