Isolated bladder training or in combination with other therapies to improve overactive bladder symptoms: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: Bladder training (BT), the maintenance of a scheduled voiding regime at gradually adjusted intervals, is a common treatment for overactive bladder (OAB). OBJECTIVES: To assess the effects of isolated BT and/or in combination with other therapies on OAB symptoms. METHODS: A systematic review of eight databases was conducted. After screening titles and abstracts, full texts were retrieved. Cochrane RoB 2 and the GRADE approach were used. RESULTS: Fourteen RCTs were included: they studied isolated BT (n = 11), BT plus drug treatment (DT; n = 5), BT plus intravaginal electrical stimulation (IVES; n = 2), BT plus biofeedback and IVES (n = 1), BT plus pelvic floor muscle training and behavioral therapy (n = 2), BT plus percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation, and BT plus transcutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (n = 1). In a meta-analysis of short-term follow-up data, BT plus IVES resulted in greater improvement in nocturia (mean difference [MD]: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.5, 1.20), urinary incontinence (UI; MD: 1.93, 95% CI: 1.32, 2.55), and quality of life (QoL; MD: 4.87, 95% CI: 2.24, 7.50) than isolated BT, while DT and BT improved UI (MD: 0.58, 95% CI: 0.23, 0.92) more than isolated BT. CONCLUSION: In the short term, BT plus IVES improves the OAB symptoms of nocturia and UI while improving QoL. The limited number of RCTs and heterogeneity among them provide a low level of evidence, making the effect of BT on OAB inconclusive, which suggests that new RCTs should be performed.

Fatigue, depression, and physical activity in patients with malignant hyperthermia: a cross-sectional observational study.

BACKGROUND: Malignant Hyperthermia (MH) is a pharmacogenetic disorder triggered by halogenated anesthesia agents/succinylcholine and characterized by hypermetabolism crisis during anesthesia, but also by day-to-day symptoms, such as exercise intolerance, that may alert the health professional. OBJECTIVE: The study aimed to analyze the incidence of fatigue in MH susceptible patients and the variables that can impact perception of fatigue, such as the level of routine physical activity and depression. METHODS: A cross-sectional observational study was carried out with three groups ... 22 patients susceptible to MH (positive in vitro muscle contracture test), 13 non-susceptible to MH (negative in vitro muscle contracture test) and 22 controls (no history of MH). Groups were assessed by a demographic/clinical questionnaire, a fatigue severity scale (intensity, specific situations, psychological consequences, rest/sleep response), and the Beck depression scale. Subgroups were re-assessed with the Baecke habitual physical exercise questionnaire (occupational physical activity, leisure physical exercise, leisure/locomotion physical activity). RESULTS: There were no significant differences among the three groups regarding fatigue intensity, fatigue related to specific situations, psychological consequences of fatigue, fatigue response to resting/sleeping, depression, number of active/sedentary participants, and the mean time and characteristics of habitual physical activity. Nevertheless, unlike the control sub-group, the physically active MH-susceptible subgroup had a higher fatigue response to resting/sleeping than the sedentary MH susceptible subgroup (respectively, 5.9.ß...ß1.9 vs. 3.9.ß...ß2, t-test unpaired, p.ß<.ß0.05). CONCLUSION: We did not detect subjective fatigue in MH susceptible patients, although we reported protracted recovery after physical activity, which may alert us to further investigation requirements.