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Connecticut Surgery Center

Sacral Neuromodulation

Sacral neuromodulation (SNM) is a minimally invasive procedure that uses electrical stimulation to help the brain communicate with the bladder and bowel, and treat lower urinary tract and bowel dysfunctions: urinary incontinence, urinary retention, overactive bladder, and anal incontinence.

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Brown, Steven, MD Czyrko, Christina, MD Mirth, Maria, MD

Knowing What to Expect

Preparing for surgery can feel overwhelming or scary if you don’t know what to expect. You may have some unanswered questions and worries that make you feel this way. Knowing what to expect will help you feel less nervous and more in control.

Prevalence

Fecal incontinence or accidental bowel leakage affects 1 in 12 people worldwide but is more common in women.

Urinary leakage can be seen as high as 30 to 50 percent. This is seen in higher percentages in older individuals.

Treatment Options

There are many ways to manage bowel control problems. Remember, if conservative treatments don’t deliver the results you need, you have more options.

Lifestyle Changes

Conservative treatments can help some people but may not work very well (or at all) for others. All of these are relatively simple behavioral changes that you may already be doing.

  • Dietary modification: changes may include adjusting fiber intake or eliminating troublesome foods.
  • Bowel retraining: also called biofeedback or pelvic floor physiotherapy, this aims to improve bowel sensation, coordination, and strength.
  • Medication: anti-diarrheal medications may provide some relief.

Oral Medications

When lifestyle changes fail to deliver the relief results you want, oral medications are the next step. These medications can help control symptoms but may cause other issues.

These medications need to be taken daily. Some side effects can be unpleasant, such as dizziness, drowsiness, tiredness or constipation. Other side effects are more serious. Even more important, these medications don’t always work. In one survey, 72% of people said they stopped taking their medication after just six months.

Advanced Therapies

If conservative treatments don’t deliver the results you want, you have more options.

Sacral nerve stimulation can be provided by two different companies.

Similar in many ways, Medtronic and Axonics provide devices for patients with urinary and fecal leakage.

  • Try it during an evaluation
  • Proven long-term success2*

Implanting these devices have risks similar to any surgical procedure, including swelling, bruising, bleeding, and infection. Talk with your doctor about ways to minimize these risks. Complications can occur with the evaluation, including movement of the wire, technical problems with the device, and some temporary pain. Your doctor or nurse will provide you with the information regarding how to operate the test device, and inform you of other precautions related to the evaluation and activity restrictions.

Information on this site should not be used as a substitute for talking with your doctor. Always talk with your doctor about diagnosis and treatment information.

Success defined as ≥ 50% reduction of episodes/week.