I would like to share on my blog, this article that was written in the publication: “Ask the Experts” by Baoyan Liu, MD, researcher, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing.

Can Acupuncture help with incontinence?

Yes. New finding: When 500 women received 18 real or sham electroacupuncture treatments (acupuncture with electrical stimulation) with needles placed on the lower back over a six week period, two-thirds of those receiving the actual treatments had a decrease of 50% or more in the amount of leakage. For longer-lasting effects, an additional round of electroacupuncture is recommended.

Theory:

Acupuncture may strengthen the muscles in the pelvic floor that help control the bladder.

Discussion:

Based on my experience, Electro-acupuncture helps to strengthen the muscles in general and it is always an excellent therapy to use for patients who have more or less a sedentary lifestyle which is becoming more common in our society. Everyday in our clinic, we see patients who are experiencing muscle weakness and the older they get the worse, it gets. During the aging process, muscles have the tendency to lose their elasticity and they start to atrophy. Physical activities are very important to keep the muscles healthy. The study failed to explain the cause of these women’s incontinence but many women after childbearing will experience some leakage, it is very common. Electro-acupuncture can help to restore some of the muscles’ function in the pelvic floor.

Conclusion:

These studies are very important for our clinic to prove that acupuncture can be studied and evaluated with conventional research. It also provides an objective point of view from a difference medical source. In general, I always share with my patients, the importance of light to moderate exercises in combination with acupuncture,especially when we are working on a condition that will require muscles’ strengthening. We believe that it is true that in some cases of incontinence, Electro-acupuncture can provide positive results.