Low-intensity extracorporeal shock wave therapy (LiESWT), as a non-invasive physical therapeutic modality, is increasingly recognized for its potential in treating lower urinary tract dysfunction (LUTD). This article systematically explores the potential molecular mechanisms through which LiESWT acts on various types of LUTD, including the downregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokine expression, induction of neovascularization, mobilization and activation of tissue stem cells, regulation of neural regeneration and repair processes, and restoration of lower urinary tract muscle function. It also elaborates the latest therapeutic advances in the application of LiESWT for overactive bladder, underactive bladder, stress urinary incontinence, chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome, and interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome. This review also provides an in-depth analysis of the therapeutic efficacy differences associated with various treatment parameters (energy density, number of shocks, treatment frequency, and total sessions), summarizing the challenges currently faced in clinical translation and proposes future research directions and perspectives, so as to offer new feasible ideas for the treatment of LUTD and provide a theoretical basis for clinical practice.

Objective The amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation(ALFF)resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging(rs-fMRI)was used to investigate the signals image in the brain functional areas of overactive bladder(OAB)patients.Methods OAB patients treated in 3 participating hospitals during Mar.2021 and Mar.2023 were selected as the OAB group(n=14).Healthy subjects matching the gender,age and years of education of the patients in the OAB group were collected as the control group(NC group,n=14).Changes in the over active bladder symptom score(OABSS),quality of life scale(QoL),self-rating depression scale(SDS),self-rating anxiety scale(SAS)were analyzed.All subjects underwent rs-fMRI to collect blood oxygen level dependent magnetic resonance signals,which were then processed with ALFF.Two-sample t-test was conducted on the results to obtain the different brain regions.Results The OABSS[(8.07±0.37)vs.(1.21±0.18)],QoL[(4.85±0.21)vs.(0.64±0.13)],SAS[(60.14±1.40)vs.(37.64±1.57)]and SDS[(52.50±1.29)vs.(36.14±0.34)]scores of the OAB group were higher than those of the NC group,with significant differences(P＜0.05).The brain regions with significant differences in ALFF were located in the left supplementary motor area,left medial superior frontal gyrus and right anterior central gyrus(P＜0.000 1).Conclusion The abnormal spontaneous activity and coordination ability of the brain in resting state may lead to OAB symptoms,which are displayed in the abnormal functions of the left supplementary motor area,left medial superior frontal gyrus and right anterior central gyrus.

Compared with simple stress urinary incontinence (SUI), complicated female SUI is more diverse in etiology and more difficult to treat.Based on domestic and foreign literature and our diagnosis and treatment experience, this paper makes a detailed introduction to the definition, diagnosis, evaluation and clinical treatment of complicated female SUI, so as to provide guidance and reference for the treatment of this disease.

Objective:To collect data on urinary flow rate in the elderly female population across the country and to analyze the range of reference values.Methods:This study enrolled 333 subjects from July 2020 to June 2022.The study implementation process was divided into two steps.In the first step, subjects completed an electronic questionnaire, which included basic information about the subject, a short form for urinary incontinence, and a scoring form for the symptoms of overactive bladder syndrome.In the second step, the staff introduced the use of a mobile uroflowmetric device and distributed the instrument and materials.Uroflow rate data were automatically uploaded to a cloud database via the mobile phone.Subsequently, two or more physicians specializing in urinary control performed Uroflow rate-qualifying screenings and conducted statistical analyses.Results:A total of 333 subjects were enrolled in the study, and the researchers collected 1375 qualified urine flow rate records using a mobile urine flow rate instrument.The age of the subjects ranged from 60 to 84 years, with a mean age of 69 years.The reference ranges for urinary flow rate were found to be 24.8-26.2 s, with a mean urinary flow rate of 12.2-12.9 ml/s, a maximum urinary flow rate of 22.2-23.4 ml/s, and a time to peak of 8.5-9.7 s. The study observed a tendency for both maximal and mean urinary flow rates to decrease in older women as their age increased(Pearson correlation coefficient: -0.1, P<0.001). Conclusions:The uroflow rate of older women decreases with aging.Specifically, the average uroflow rate of women over 80 years old is lower than that of other age groups.This study aims to establish normal uroflow parameters for uroflowmetry in healthy older women in China.

Diabetic bladder dysfunction is one of the most common complications of urinary tract in diabetes. It is believed that the disorders of glucose metabolism, local tissue ischemia, superoxide-induced free radical production and axonal transport disorder are all involved in the development of diabetic bladder nerve dysfunction. Oxidative stress is believed to be the core mechanism of the above mentioned etiology. It may affect the transcription and translation process in the nucleus by interfering with the balance of intracellular oxidation and antioxidant, metabolism of neurotrophic factors and cellular signal transduction pathways, resulting in dysfunction of several important cellular pathways and decreased membrane stability. And eventually lead to nerve cell apoptosis. Therefore, controlling blood glucose, improving the microenvironment around dorsal root neurons, and protecting the stability of mitochondrial membrane may be potential methods for the treatment of diabetic bladder nerve dysfunction.

Objective:To investigate the safety and efficacy of sacral neuromodulation(SNM)therapy for the treatment of lower urinary tract dysfunction(LUTD)in elderly patients.Methods:Clinical data of 91 elderly patients with LUTD from multiple medical institutions who received SNM during the period from January 2012 to December 2016 were retrospectively analyzed.Patients were divided into four groups: the interstitial cystitis(IC)group(n=28), the neurogenic bladder(NB)group(n=36), the overactive bladder syndrome(OAB)group(n=13)and the idiopathic dysuria(ID)group(n=14). Different sets of evaluation parameters were used for different diseases.Patients’ baseline data and data in stage I(test phase)and stage Ⅱ(permanent SNM)were recorded, statistically analyzed and compared.Results:Ninety-one people underwent SNM treatment.Of them, 53 patients received permanent implants(stage Ⅱ), and the total conversion rate of stage I to stage Ⅱ was 58.2%(53/91). Patients receiving permanent implants(stage Ⅱ)had a preoperative period ranging from 3 months to 30 years, and were followed up for 2 to 58 months after treatment, with an average follow-up of 19.6 months.The improvement rates in stage I for urinary urgency, daily urination frequency, daily nocturnal urination frequency, maximum urine volume, daily average urine volume, daily urine leakage frequency, and quality of life score were 35.4%, 31.6%, 33.7%, 32.6%, 49.2%, 43.2% and 13.2%, respectively.The improvement rates in stage Ⅱ for urinary urgency, daily urination frequency, daily nocturnal urination frequency, maximum urine volume, daily average urine volume, daily urine leakage frequency, and quality of life score were 43.2%, 40.0%, 37.8%, 50.5%, 70.5%, 70.4% and 43.2%, respectively.Three adverse events occurred, including 1 case of recurrent symptoms, 1 case of moderate infection, and 1 case of electrical lead dislocation.Conclusions:Sacral nerve stimulation has definitive and consistent curative effects on LUTD in elderly people.The follow-up time should be extended to further study the safety of sacral nerve stimulation.

Objective To compare the outcomes between interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS)patients treated with three-drug combination (M blockers + alpha blockers + Amitriptyline) and Sodium hyaluronate intravesical instillation.Methods The patients who came to Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University during October 2014 to September 2015 were investigated if they had IC/BPS.According to the treatment plan,27 patients (group A) received three-drug combination (M blocker + alpha blockers + Amitriptyline)therapy.Thirty-eight patients recelved instillation of sodium hyaluronate (40 mg/50 ml) therapy (group B).Intravesical instillations were performed weekly in the first 6 weeks,and monthly until sixth month.Interstitial cystitis symptom index,interstitial cystitis problem index,overactive bladder symptom score,visual analogue scale/score,the maximum urination and self-rating depression scale were assessed at baseline and the sixth month.Measurement data were expressed as ((x) ±s),t test was used for comparison between groups,and paired t-test was used for comparison of paired data.Results There were 65 patients.Age range was 25-73 years,course of disease (2-99 months),average age (51.4 ± 13.5),average duration (39.8 ± 31.0) months,of which 9 male (13.8％) and 56 female (86.2％) patients.The group A variation of ICSI、ICPI、OABSS、VAS、SDS and maximum urination were 3.7 ± 2.4、1.3 ± 1.5、1.2 ± 1.3、2.1 ± 1.5、3.1 ± 4.5、74.6 ± 52.4,The variation of group B ware 6.8 ± 3.6、5.0 ± 3.8、2.5 ± 1.8、2.8 ± 1.7、8.9 ± 6.4、109.0 ± 81.1.The improvement in ICSI,ICPI,OABSS,SDS of group B were higher than group A (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion IC/BPS seriously affect the quality of life and the patients are prone to depression.The sodium hyaluronate intravesical instillation therapy could achieve more effect than the three-drug combination therapy.

The clinical and urodynamic data of 37 patients with benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) and 30 diabetic patients complicated with BPH (BPH+DM) admitted between Jan 2014 and July 2017 were analyzed retrospectively. The International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), maximal flow rate (Qmax), post-voiding residual urine volume (PVR), maximum cystometric capacity (MCC), first desire to void (FDV), pressure of detrusor maximum (Pdet, max), bladder outlet obstruction index (BOOI), bladder contraction index (BCI) were compared between BPH group and BPH+DM group. According to BOOI-BCI linear regression, 22 cases (group A) and 15 cases (group B) of BPH patients were above and below the linear curve; while there were 14 cases (group C) and 16 cases(group D)of BPH+DM patients above and below the curve, respectively. The mean±SD FDV, MCC, Pdet, max, PVR, BOOI, BCI were (172.7±93.0)ml vs. (300.5±118.4)ml (P<0.05), (311.9±147.1)ml vs. (509.3±98.6)ml (P<0.05), (84.7±51.5)cmH2O(1 cm H2O=0.098 kPa) vs. (49.7± 32.9)cmH2O vs (P<0.05), 10.0 ml(0—200 ml) vs. 41.5 ml(0—450 ml), 69.7 ± 53.7 vs. 35.9 ± 32.3 (P<0.05), 122.3±50.2 vs 84.2±43.3 (P<0.05) in BPH and BPH+DM groups, respectively. In BPH group and BPH+DM group, the regression coefficients of BOOI-BCI were 0.889 and 0.724, respectively. In group A and group B, the difference value of IPSS and Qmax pre and post operation were 7.6±3.5 and 7.3±4.1 (P>0.05), (2.6±1.1)ml/s and (3.7±1.3) ml/s (P<0.05), respectively. In group C and group D, the difference value of IPSS and Qmax pre and post operation were 5.3 ± 2.4 and 6.0 ± 3.3 (P>0.05), (2.4 ± 1.0)ml/s and (3.8 ± 1.4)ml/s (P<0.05), respectively. The study indicates that the therapeutic effect is better for the patients blow BOOI-BCI regression linear curve compared to the patients above the linear curve.

Objective To observe the histological features of muscular layers in different parts of esophagus of patients with achalasia (AC) and to explore the distribution and function of eosinophils in esophageal muscular layer in patients with AC.Methods From June 2015 to February 2016,21 patients diagnosed with AC by endoscopy,barium meal and esophageal high resolution manometry,accepted peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) were enrolled.At the same period,nine patients with esophageal carcinoma who received esophagectomy were selected as controls.Muscular tissues of lower esophageal sphincter (LES),distal esophagus (5 cm above LES) and middle esophagus (10 cm above LES) of patients with AC and controls were taken for regular haematoxylin-eosin (H-E) staining to analyze degree of eosinophils infiltration.Nonparametric analysis and Chi-square analysis were used for statistical analysis.Spearman correlation analysis was used for analyzing correlations.Results The results of H-E staining indicated that different degree of eosinophil infiltration was found in 18(85.7％) patients with AC,and eosinophil counts in muscular layer were over 15 per high power field in five patients with AC (23.8％,5/21).However,no eosinophils infiltration was found in esophageal carcinoma patients.Median numbers of eosinophil in muscular layer of LES,distal esophagus and middle esophagus were all higher than those of esophageal carcinoma group (4.0,2.0 to 10.0 vs 1.0,0 to 1.5;4.0,1.0 to 17.0 vs 1.0,0.5 to 1.5；6.0,0.5 to 15.0 vs 0,0 to 1.0),and the differences were statistically significant (Z=2.997,2.476 and 2.504,all P＜0.05).The distribution of eosinophils in muscular layer of LES,distalesophagus and middle esophagus between the two groups were statistically significant (x2=2.710,2.543and 2.313,all P＜0.05).The differences in eosinophils distribution in muscular layer of LES,distal esophagus and middle esophagus in patients with AC were not ststistically significant (x2 =0.110,P＞0.05).Additionally,number of eosinophils in muscular layer of different parts of esophagus was not correlated with age and disease course (r=0.434 and 0.639；P =0.282 and 0.088).Conclusion The wide distribution of eosinophils in muscular layer of esophagus in patients with AC may involve in the genesis and development of AC.

Interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome is a chronic pain syndrome characterised by pain/ discomfort attributed to the bladder,with associated urgency and urinary frequency.Its etiology is unknown and the syndrome probably have different manifestations.There is no specific treatment and multi-treatment often been used to treat interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrone.Bladder instillation therapy is often used as an important treatment because the drug is concentrated in the bladder and keeps a higher concentration.But the drug selection and treatment regimen of bladder instillation are not uniform.A number of intravesical agents are reviewed in this paper along with the available evidence for their use.