1.1
More research is needed on electrically stimulated intravesical therapy to manage the symptoms of interstitial cystitis or overactive bladder in adults before it can be used in the NHS.
1 Recommendations
1.2
This procedure should only be done as part of a formal research study and a research ethics committee needs to have approved its use.
What evidence generation and research is needed
1.3
More research and evidence generation, ideally in the form of adequately powered randomised controlled trials with an appropriate comparator, is needed on:
-
patient selection
-
the medicines used
-
the duration and number of treatments
-
effect on quality of life
-
duration of symptom relief
-
adverse events, including potential long-term complications.
Why the committee made these recommendations
There are no major safety concerns for this procedure. But there is very limited evidence of its efficacy. The evidence comes from studies that include small numbers of people. Also, the studies each use different medicines and vary in the number of repeat procedures people had. This makes the evidence uncertain. This procedure has the potential to address an unmet need for treatments for interstitial cystitis and overactive bladder, which can be debilitating conditions. Overall, there is not enough good quality evidence on the efficacy of this procedure. So, it should only be used in research.