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Efficacy and Safety of Transcutaneous Posterior Tibial Nerve Stimulation on Fecal Continence in Patients Undergoing Surgery for Rectal Neoplasia

2 juni 2026 uppdaterad av: Meritxell Font Prat, Althaia Xarxa Assistencial Universitària de Manresa

Randomized Clinical Trial Assessing the Efficacy and Safety of Transcutaneous Posterior Tibial Nerve Stimulation on Fecal Continence in Patients Undergoing Surgery for Rectal Neoplasia

Rectal neoplasia is one of the most prevalent cancers in Spain, and the treatment of choice is total mesorectal excision (TME), as it has demonstrated significant oncological improvements. However, mesorectal excision is not without complications, and patients often experience altered bowel function in the form of low anterior resection syndrome (LARS), as well as erectile dysfunction. However, few studies evaluate faecal incontinence, as most focus on oncological outcomes.

The aim of our study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of posterior tibial nerve stimulation on fecal incontinence, sexual dysfunction, and quality of life in patients who underwent to rectal surgery for rectal neoplasia.

It will be conducted a randomized clinical trial (1:1) with two arms: half of the patients will receive posterior tibial nerve stimulation, while the other half will undergo stimulation with subtherapeutic doses. Faecal incontinence will be assessed using the LARS and Wexner questionnaires, and quality of life and sexual function will be assessed using the Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Scale (FIQLS) and the Colorectal Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ-CR38), at one month, six months and one year after surgery.

Studieöversikt

Studietyp

Interventionell

Inskrivning (Beräknad)

84

Fas

  • Inte tillämpbar

Kontakter och platser

Det här avsnittet innehåller kontaktuppgifter för dem som genomför studien och information om var denna studie genomförs.

Studiekontakt

Studieorter

    • Barcelona
      • Manresa, Barcelona, Spanien, 08243
        • Rekrytering
        • Althaia Xarxa Assistencial Universitària de Manresa
        • Kontakt:
        • Huvudutredare:
          • Meritxell Font Prat, MD
      • Manresa, Barcelona, Spanien, 08243
        • Rekrytering
        • Xarxa Assistencial Universitària de Manresa, Althaia
        • Kontakt:
        • Huvudutredare:
          • Ignasi Puig, Medical doctor
        • Underutredare:
          • Meritxell Font, Medical doctor
        • Underutredare:
          • Sheila Serra, Medical doctor

Deltagandekriterier

Forskare letar efter personer som passar en viss beskrivning, så kallade behörighetskriterier. Några exempel på dessa kriterier är en persons allmänna hälsotillstånd eller tidigare behandlingar.

Urvalskriterier

Åldrar som är berättigade till studier

  • Vuxen
  • Äldre vuxen

Tar emot friska volontärer

Nej

Beskrivning

Inclusion Criteria:

- Adult patients diagnosed with rectal neoplasia and who have undergone a high anterior rectal resection regardless of the surgical approach (open, laparoscopic, laparoscopic+TaTME or robotic+TaTME).

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients not operated or within active surveillance strategy programs (watch & wait)
  • Patients with ostomy
  • Patients with contraindications to the use of the neurostimulator:

    • Pacemaker / Defibrillator / Other electronic devices
    • History of heart problems
    • Propensity to excessive bleeding (coagulopathies)
    • Damage to the nervous system (epilepsy)
    • Current pregnancy
    • Infections or skin lesions
    • Severe vascular disorders
    • Active neoplasms.

Studieplan

Det här avsnittet ger detaljer om studieplanen, inklusive hur studien är utformad och vad studien mäter.

Hur är studien utformad?

Designdetaljer

  • Primärt syfte: Behandling
  • Tilldelning: Randomiserad
  • Interventionsmodell: Parallellt uppdrag
  • Maskning: Fyrdubbla

Vapen och interventioner

Deltagargrupp / Arm
Intervention / Behandling
Experimentell: Intervention group
Posterior tibial nerve stimulation with Beurer EM-49 digital neuroestimulator at complete doses

In the intervention group, Beurer EM-49 digital neurostimulator will be used, with CE marking, and a dose of 20 Hertz (Hz) - 200 microseconds (μs) will be applied.

As the control group and the intervention group, the pelvic floor rehabilitator will program the neurostimulator for each case and then they will be trained on how to perform the neurostimulation.

The first session will be carried out with the rehabilitator to learn how it works and resolve doubts about its use, and later the sessions will be carried out at home.

In both groups, a program for carrying out sessions will be indicated according to the following scheme:

  • From the 1st month to the 3rd month post-surgery: stimulation 3 times a week
  • From the 4th month to the 6th month post-surgery: stimulation 2 times a week
  • From the 7th to the 12th month post-surgery: 1 time a week
Sham Comparator: Control group
Posterior tibial nerve stimulation with Beurer EM-49 digital neuroestimulator at subtherapeutic doses

In the intervention group, Beurer EM-49 digital neurostimulator will be used, with CE marking; and a dose of 80 Hertz (Hz) - 150 microseconds (μs) will be applied.

As the control group and the intervention group, the pelvic floor rehabilitator will program the neurostimulator for each case and then they will be trained on how to perform the neurostimulation.

In order to apply the therapy, the patient must sit down for the placement of the electrodes.

It will be performed on 2 feet at the same time. The first session will be carried out with the rehabilitator to learn how it works and resolve doubts about its use, and later the sessions will be carried out at home.

In both groups, a program for carrying out sessions will be indicated according to the following scheme:

  • From the 1st month to the 3rd month post-surgery: stimulation 3 times a week
  • From the 4th month to the 6th month post-surgery: stimulation 2 times a week
  • From the 7th to the 12th month post-surgery: 1 time a week

Vad mäter studien?

Primära resultatmått

Resultatmått
Åtgärdsbeskrivning
Tidsram
Faecal incontinence (FI) - LARS 1st month
Tidsram: 1st month post-surgery
Assessed by LARS questionnaire Low anterior resection syndrome (LARS): LARS scale consists of 5 questions: gas incontinence (0,4,7 points), liquid incontinence (0,3,3 points), stool frequency (4,2,0,5 points), defecation fractionation (0,9,11 points) and defecatory urgency (0, 11,16 points). The score range is between 0 and 42 points. Patients are categorized into three groups: no LARS (0 to 20 points), mild LARS (21 to 29 points) and severe LARS (30 to 42 points).
1st month post-surgery
Faecal incontinence (FI) - LARS 6th month
Tidsram: 6th month post-surgery
Assessed by LARS questionnaire Low anterior resection syndrome (LARS): LARS scale consists of 5 questions: gas incontinence (0,4,7 points), liquid incontinence (0,3,3 points), stool frequency (4,2,0,5 points), defecation fractionation (0,9,11 points) and defecatory urgency (0, 11,16 points). The score range is between 0 and 42 points. Patients are categorized into three groups: no LARS (0 to 20 points), mild LARS (21 to 29 points) and severe LARS (30 to 42 points).
6th month post-surgery
Faecal incontinence (FI) - LARS 12th month
Tidsram: 12th month post-surgery
Assessed by LARS questionnaire Low anterior resection syndrome (LARS): LARS scale consists of 5 questions: gas incontinence (0,4,7 points), liquid incontinence (0,3,3 points), stool frequency (4,2,0,5 points), defecation fractionation (0,9,11 points) and defecatory urgency (0, 11,16 points). The score range is between 0 and 42 points. Patients are categorized into three groups: no LARS (0 to 20 points), mild LARS (21 to 29 points) and severe LARS (30 to 42 points).
12th month post-surgery
Feacal incontinence (FI) - Wexner 1st month
Tidsram: 1st month post-surgery
Assessed by Wexner questionnaire. Wexner scale consists of 5 questions (range 0-4): incontinence of solid stools, incontinence of liquid stools, incontinence of gases, use of pads or diapers and alteration of social life. Depending on the frequency, a score of 0 to 4 is assigned. The score can range from 0 to 20 points, considering no incontinence as 0 to 2 points, mild incontinence as a result of 3 to 6 points, moderate incontinence as 7 to 11 points and severe incontinence as a result greater than or equal to 12 points.
1st month post-surgery
Faecal incontinence (FI) - Wexner 6th month
Tidsram: 6th month post-surgery
Assessed by Wexner questionnaire. Wexner scale consists of 5 questions (range 0-4): incontinence of solid stools, incontinence of liquid stools, incontinence of gases, use of pads or diapers and alteration of social life. Depending on the frequency, a score of 0 to 4 is assigned. The score can range from 0 to 20 points, considering no incontinence as 0 to 2 points, mild incontinence as a result of 3 to 6 points, moderate incontinence as 7 to 11 points and severe incontinence as a result greater than or equal to 12 points.
6th month post-surgery
Faecal incontinece (FI) - Wexner 12th month
Tidsram: 12th month post-surgery
Assessed by Wexner questionnaire. Wexner scale consists of 5 questions (range 0-4): incontinence of solid stools, incontinence of liquid stools, incontinence of gases, use of pads or diapers and alteration of social life. Depending on the frequency, a score of 0 to 4 is assigned. The score can range from 0 to 20 points, considering no incontinence as 0 to 2 points, mild incontinence as a result of 3 to 6 points, moderate incontinence as 7 to 11 points and severe incontinence as a result greater than or equal to 12 points.
12th month post-surgery

Sekundära resultatmått

Resultatmått
Åtgärdsbeskrivning
Tidsram
Sexual impairment 1st month
Tidsram: 1st month post-surgery

Assessed by QLQ-CR38 questionnaire (question 17-18 for both sexes, 20-21 for men and 22-23 for women).

Each question can be answered from 1 to 4 points. And then is it calculated in the sexual impairment analysis (symptoms area)

1st month post-surgery
Sexual impairment - 6th month
Tidsram: 6th month post-surgery
Assessed by QLQ-CR38 questionnaire (question 17-18 for both sexes, 20-21 for men and 22-23 for women). Each question can be answered from 1 to 4 points. And then is it calculated in the sexual impairment analysis (symptoms area)
6th month post-surgery
Sexual impairment - 12th month
Tidsram: 12th month post-surgery
Assessed by QLQ-CR38 questionnaire (question 17-18 for both sexes, 20-21 for men and 22-23 for women). Each question can be answered from 1 to 4 points. And then is it calculated in the sexual impairment analysis (symptoms area)
12th month post-surgery
Quality of life (QoL) - FIQLS 1st month
Tidsram: 1st month post-surgery

Assessed by:

-Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Scale(FIQLS):composed of 29 items that evaluate 4 health dimensions:lifestyle(10 items),behavior(9 items),depression/self-esteem(7 items) and shame(3 items).Each item has a range from 1 to 5,with 1 being the minimum value for the quality of life state.

1st month post-surgery
Quality of life (QoL) - FIQLS 6th month
Tidsram: 6th month post-surgery

Assessed by:

-Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Scale(FIQLS):composed of 29 items that evaluate 4 health dimensions:lifestyle(10 items),behavior(9 items),depression/self-esteem(7 items) and shame(3 items).Each item has a range from 1 to 5,with 1 being the minimum value for the quality of life state

6th month post-surgery
Quality of life (QoL) - FIQLS 12th month
Tidsram: 12th month post-surgery

Assessed by:

-Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Scale(FIQLS):composed of 29 items that evaluate 4 health dimensions:lifestyle(10 items),behavior(9 items),depression/self-esteem(7 items) and shame(3 items).Each item has a range from 1 to 5,with 1 being the minimum value for the quality of life state

12th month post-surgery
Quality of life (QoL) - QLQ-CR 38 1st month
Tidsram: 1st month

Assessed by:

-Colorectal Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire(QLQ-CR38):organized into 2 areas: 1.Functioning area,which includes the body image and sexual functioning scales and the items on enjoying sex and worrying about the future.2.Symptom area with scales for problems with urination,gastrointestinal symptoms,chemotherapy side effects,problems with defecation,problems with the stoma,sexual problems in men and women,and the weight loss item. All scores ranged 1 to 4, and then are lineal transformation is done (0 to 100). In the functioning area,a higher score indicates a better quality of life,while in the symptom area, a higher score indicates a worse quality

1st month
Quality of life (QoL) - QLQ-CR38 6th month
Tidsram: 6th month post-surgery

Assessed by:

-Colorectal Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire(QLQ-CR38):organized into 2 areas: 1.Functioning area,which includes the body image and sexual functioning scales and the items on enjoying sex and worrying about the future.2.Symptom area with scales for problems with urination,gastrointestinal symptoms,chemotherapy side effects,problems with defecation,problems with the stoma,sexual problems in men and women,and the weight loss item. All scores ranged 1 to 4, and then are lineal transformation is done (0 to 100). In the functioning area,a higher score indicates a better quality of life,while in the symptom area, a higher score indicates a worse quality

6th month post-surgery
Quality of life (QoL) - QLQ-CR38 12th month
Tidsram: 12th month post-surgery

Assessed by:

-Colorectal Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire(QLQ-CR38):organized into 2 areas: 1.Functioning area,which includes the body image and sexual functioning scales and the items on enjoying sex and worrying about the future.2.Symptom area with scales for problems with urination,gastrointestinal symptoms,chemotherapy side effects,problems with defecation,problems with the stoma,sexual problems in men and women,and the weight loss item. All scores ranged 1 to 4, and then are lineal transformation is done (0 to 100). In the functioning area,a higher score indicates a better quality of life,while in the symptom area, a higher score indicates a worse quality

12th month post-surgery
Patient global impression of improvement (PGI-I)
Tidsram: 1 year

Assessed by PGI-I questionnaire.

The Patient Global Improvement Visual Analogue Scale (PGI-I) will be used to allow patients to comparatively assess their degree of global improvement after undergoing posterior tibial nerve stimulation therapy. The scale in question has only one question that asks the patient to classify the degree of symptom relief obtained with the treatment according to the 7-point Likert scale. The higher the score, the better the perception of quality of life.

1 year

Andra resultatmått

Resultatmått
Åtgärdsbeskrivning
Tidsram
Patient's characteristics
Tidsram: At the enrollment
Age at diagnosis (years), sex (man/woman), height (m), weight (kg), BMI (kg/m2), prior anorectal disease (yes and not, if yes should specify)
At the enrollment
Concomitant medication for stool
Tidsram: At the enrollment
methylcellulose, loperamide, ... (yes or no, if yes should specify)
At the enrollment
Tumor characteristics
Tidsram: At the enrollment
Date of diagnosis (exact day), clinical TNM stage (TNM), tumour height from the anal verge by colonoscopy (cm) and proctoscopy (cm) magnetic resonance imaging findings (TNM, cm to anal verge), neadjuvant treatment (yes or no, which type), CEA values (ng/mL), neutrophil and lymphocyte values pre and post-chemotherapy (absolut value x10e9)
At the enrollment
Surgical details
Tidsram: At the enrollment
Date of surgery, surgical approach (laparoscopic (LAP), robotic (ROB), LAP + transanal (TaTME), ROB + TaTME), transanal extraction of the specimen (yes or no), intraoperative complications (specify), type of anastomosis (mechanic, manual), height of anastomosis (cm), protective ileostomy (yes or no)
At the enrollment
Follow-up
Tidsram: From the surgical day (day 1) to the end of the study (day 360)
Days of hospital stay (days), days until intake (days), postoperative complications (yes or no, if yes specify and complete Clavien-Dindo clasification), treatment of postoperative complication (need of new surgery, yes or no, if yes specify surgical procedure), readmission (yes or no, specify why)
From the surgical day (day 1) to the end of the study (day 360)
Esphinteric funcionality
Tidsram: At 1st month and 12th month from day 1 (surgery day)
Rectal examination with basal tone and transperineal ultrasound (normal, insufficient expulsive maneuver, sphincter defect, anism, rectal hypersensitivity, rectal hyposensitivity, not performed), Oxford classification of esphinteric muscular strenght (0 to 5, being 5 good function).
At 1st month and 12th month from day 1 (surgery day)
Compliance diary
Tidsram: 1 year
Registration of the sessions done and observations
1 year

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Användbara länkar

Studieavstämningsdatum

Dessa datum spårar framstegen för inlämningar av studieposter och sammanfattande resultat till ClinicalTrials.gov. Studieposter och rapporterade resultat granskas av National Library of Medicine (NLM) för att säkerställa att de uppfyller specifika kvalitetskontrollstandarder innan de publiceras på den offentliga webbplatsen.

Studera stora datum

Studiestart (Faktisk)

6 februari 2026

Primärt slutförande (Beräknad)

31 december 2027

Avslutad studie (Beräknad)

31 december 2028

Studieregistreringsdatum

Först inskickad

6 februari 2026

Först inskickad som uppfyllde QC-kriterierna

2 juni 2026

Första postat (Faktisk)

8 juni 2026

Uppdateringar av studier

Senaste uppdatering publicerad (Faktisk)

8 juni 2026

Senaste inskickade uppdateringen som uppfyllde QC-kriterierna

2 juni 2026

Senast verifierad

1 maj 2026

Mer information

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Plan för individuella deltagardata (IPD)

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IPD-planbeskrivning

It is planned to publish the complete result data without providing specific participant data.

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