A Novel Biofeedback for Urinary Incontinence in Women

February 26, 2024 updated by: Dr. Priya Kannan, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A Novel Biofeedback Device to Improve Adherence to Pelvic Floor Muscle Training in Women With Urinary Incontinence: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial

A three-armed randomized pilot trial will be conducted with 51 women having stress urinary incontinence, to evaluate the acceptance and ease of use of the conventional electromyography (EMG) biofeedback via vaginal probe in the treatment of urinary incontinence and that of the newly developed EMG biofeedback with Bluetooth. Women will be randomly allocated to one of two intervention groups (new biofeedback or conventional biofeedback) or the control group (PFMT alone). Women in the intervention groups will perform PFMT either with the new biofeedback or the conventional biofeedback, based on their group allocation. The control group will perform PFMT without a biofeedback device. Study outcome measures include, feasibility measures, International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire, and 1-hour pad test.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Objectives: (1) to compare the acceptance and ease of use of the conventional electromyography (EMG) biofeedback via vaginal probe in the treatment of urinary incontinence and that of the newly developed EMG biofeedback with Bluetooth; (2) to investigate the effects of conventional biofeedback, the new biofeedback, and pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) alone on urinary incontinence and adherence to PFMT.

Hypotheses: (1) The new biofeedback will be easier to use and women will more readily accept it than the conventional biofeedback. (2) Women assigned to the new biofeedback group will report better adherence to PFMT and greater improvements in urinary incontinence than women assigned to participate in the conventional biofeedback group.

Design and subjects: A three-armed randomized pilot trial will be conducted with 51 women who have stress urinary incontinence.

Interventions: Women will be randomly allocated to one of two intervention groups (new biofeedback or conventional biofeedback) or the control group (PFMT alone). Women in the intervention groups will perform PFMT either with the new biofeedback or the conventional biofeedback, based on their group allocation. The control group will perform PFMT without a biofeedback device.

Outcome measures: Feasibility measures, International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire, and 1-hour pad test.

Data analysis and expected results: A one-way between-groups analysis of covariance will be conducted. Adherence to PFMT will be better in the new biofeedback group than in the conventional biofeedback group. New biofeedback will have greater beneficial effects on urinary incontinence than either the conventional biofeedback or PFMT alone.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
51

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • Hong Kong
      • Kowloon, Hong Kong
        • Kwong Wah Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

35 years to 60 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • women in the age group of 35 to 60 years of age;
  • non-pregnant;
  • having stress urinary incontinence;
  • experiencing mild to moderate urinary incontinence (obtaining a score of ≤ 12 on the short-form of the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire (ICIQ-sf); and
  • obtaining a mini-mental state examination (MMSE) score of ≥ 24.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • being in the postpartum stage of < 6 months;
  • having severe pelvic organ prolapse (stages 3 and 4 on the Baden and Walker grading tool);
  • women taking any medications that might cause urine retention;
  • women having complicated UI due to radiation to pelvic region;
  • obesity with a body mass index ≥ 30;
  • women with incontinence secondary to other medical conditions or previous surgeries;
  • women with severe psychological problems impairing participation in the study; and
  • women having mixed or urge UI.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: New Biofeedback
Women allocated to the new biofeedback group will be instructed to attach the biofeedback device to their underpants and then perform pelvic floor muscle training.
Device: New Biofeedback
Conventional biofeedback consists of a electromyography biofeedback device with a vaginal probe.
Other Names:
  • Conventional Biofeedback
Active Comparator: Conventional Biofeedback
Women allocated to the conventional biofeedback group will undergo pelvic floor muscle training with the conventional biofeedback probe inserted in the vagina
Device: New Biofeedback
Conventional biofeedback consists of a electromyography biofeedback device with a vaginal probe.
Other Names:
  • Conventional Biofeedback
Active Comparator: Control group
The control group will perform pelvic floor muscle training without any biofeedback device.
Device: New Biofeedback
Conventional biofeedback consists of a electromyography biofeedback device with a vaginal probe.
Other Names:
  • Conventional Biofeedback

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Recruitment rate
Time Frame: At the end of recruitment period
Number of participants recruited/screened in a week, the time taken for recruitment of participants, and reasons for declining to participate will be recorded.
At the end of recruitment period
Adherence
Time Frame: Post-intervention at 6 months
The 0-10-point scale of the reliable tool (Cronbach's α=0.7059) developed to monitor long-term adherence to PFMT in women with UI (that quantifies adherence to home exercise as "low," "moderate," or "high") will be used to evaluate adherence to PFMT with and without the biofeedback device
Post-intervention at 6 months
Retention rate
Time Frame: Post-treatment at 1, 3 and 6 months
This will be calculated as the percentage of participants who completed assessments at 1, 3, and 6 months.
Post-treatment at 1, 3 and 6 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-short form
Time Frame: Baseline (pre-intervention), post-treatment at 1, 3 and 6 months
Measures amount of urine loss and intensity. Higher score indicates more sever urinary incontinence.
Baseline (pre-intervention), post-treatment at 1, 3 and 6 months
one-hour pad test with stress test
Time Frame: Baseline (pre-intervention), post-treatment at 1, 3 and 6 months
Measure amount of urine leakage. Larger the amount of urine lost in grams, greater is the severity of urinary incontinence.
Baseline (pre-intervention), post-treatment at 1, 3 and 6 months
Modified Oxford scale
Time Frame: Baseline (pre-intervention), post-treatment at 1, 3 and 6 months
To grade pelvic floor muscle strength. Lower the score, lower the strength of the pelvic floor muscles.
Baseline (pre-intervention), post-treatment at 1, 3 and 6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Kwong Wah Hospital

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Priya Kannan, PhD, The Hong Kong Polytechnic Unviersity

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
February 1, 2020

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
September 29, 2021

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
September 29, 2021

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
November 16, 2020

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 16, 2020

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
November 20, 2020

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
February 28, 2024

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 26, 2024

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
February 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • P0033900

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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