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Tibial Nerve Stimulation for Pediatric Spina Bifida Neurogenic Bladder

A Randomized Control Trial of Transcutaneous Tibial Nerve Stimulation for Neurogenic Bladder in the Pediatric Population

Status
Recruiting
Phases
Unknown
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT07136688
Enrollment
20
Registered
2025-08-22
Start date
2026-03-27
Completion date
2027-08-11
Last updated
2026-09-10

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Neurogenic Bladder Due to Spina Bifida

Keywords

spinal cord injury (SCI), transcutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (tTNS)

Brief summary

The purpose of this study is to determine the safety, feasibility, and compliance of a daily home transcutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (tTNS) protocol in children with chronic neurogenic bladder (NB) provided by self or caregiver for 4 weeks and to estimate the efficacy of tTNS

Interventions

DEVICEStamobil electric stimulator

The electric stimulation protocol will use stimulation frequency of 20 Hz and pulse width of 200ms in continuous mode for 30 minutes daily. The goal is daily use of tTNS for 4 weeks , 5 days per week.

DEVICEsham tTNS device

The electric sham stimulation protocol will use sham stimulation (low intensity) for 30 minutes daily, for 4 weeks , 5 days per week

Sponsors

The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
TRIPLE (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
4 Years to 17 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* chronic neurogenic bladder * Spina Bifida diagnosis * Use of overactive bladder medication(s) * Stable bladder medications for ≥ 3 months

Exclusion criteria

* Progressive SCI (ex: transverse myelitis, polio, etc.) * Other lower urinary tract pathology or surgery * 2+ pitting edema in the legs that does not resolve * Known peripheral neuropathy or injury to the path of the tibial nerve * Cancer in the tibial nerve pathway and/or lower urinary tract * Inability to elicit the motor response with electric stimulation * Inability to complete the tTNS proficiency checklist (guardians) * Non-English speaking (guardians)

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Safety as assessed by the number of adverse eventsfrom start of trial to end of trial (4 weeks after start)
Feasibility as assessed by the satisfaction surveysend of study (4 weeks after baseline)This is an 8 item questionnaire and each is scored from 1(strongly disagree) to 5(strongly agree) for a maximum score of 40, higher score indicating greater satisfaction .
Compliance of tTNS usage as assessed by the percent of sessions where toe flexion was elicitedfrom start of trial to end of trial (4 weeks after start)This will be reported in the TTNS log
Compliance of tTNS usage as assessed by the average current where toe flexion was elicitedfrom start of trial to end of trial (4 weeks after start)This will be reported in the TTNS log
Compliance of tTNS usage as assessed by percentage of sessions that bladder medications were takenfrom start of trial to end of trial (4 weeks after start)This will be reported in the TTNS log
Satisfaction as assessed by the surveyend of study (4 weeks after baseline)This will measure the likelihood of tTNS preference over anticholinergic medication use This is an 8 item questionnaire and each is scored from 1(strongly disagree) to 5(strongly agree) for a maximum score of 40, higher score indicating greater satisfaction .

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Percentage of participants that are able to reduce their overactive bladder (OAB) medicationsend of study (4 weeks after baseline)
percent dose reduction (mg ) achievedend of study (4 weeks after baseline)
Change in maximum detrusor pressure (Max Pdet (cmH20)) as assessed by the Urodynamic study (UDS)week 0, week 4
Presence of Detrusor overactivity (DO) as assessed by the Urodynamic study (UDS)week 0
Change in maximum volume (mL) that bladder can hold before voiding or discomfort as assessed by the Urodynamic study (UDS)Week 0, Week 4
Presence of bladder leak as assessed by the Urodynamic study (UDS)Week 0
Change in bladder sensation as assessed by the Urodynamic study (UDS)Week 0, Week 4volume infused (mL) at 1) time of reported first sensation of filling, 2) time of reported urgency/desire to void, \& 3) time of reported discomfort
Change in detrusor compliance as assessed by the Urodynamic study (UDS)Week 0, Week 4reported as change in bladder volume divided by change in bladder pressure.
Number of incontinence episodes as reported in the voiding diaryfrom start of trial to end of trial (4 weeks after start)
Frequency of catheterization as reported in the voiding diaryfrom start of trial to end of trial (4 weeks after start)
Volumes of catheterization as reported in the voiding diaryfrom start of trial to end of trial (4 weeks after start)
Change in bladder symptoms as assessed by the Neurogenic Bladder Symptom Score (NBSS)Week 0, Week 4This is a 24 item questionnaire that is scored from 0 (no symptoms) to 4 (worst symptoms), maximum score of 96 with higher values indicating greater symptom burden
Change in bowel function as assessed by the Neurogenic Bowel Dysfunction Score (NBDS)Week 0, Week 4This is a 10 item questionnaire that is scored from 0 (very minor ) to greater than or equal to 14(severe), maximum score range of 0-47 with higher scores indicating worse outcome
Change in general physical and mental health status as assessed by the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) questionnaire for Global HealthWeek 0, Week 4This is a 10 item questionnaire. The measure yields two standardized summary scores: Global Physical Health (GPH) and Global Mental Health (GMH).Each summary score is calculated based on 4 items from the questionnaire and is converted to a T-score using the PROMIS scoring manual. T-scores have a mean of 50 and standard deviation of 10, based on the U.S. general population. Higher T-scores indicate better health.

Countries

United States

Contacts

CONTACTArgyrios Stampas, MD, MS
Argyrios.Stampas@uth.tmc.edu(713) 797-5007
CONTACTNancy Rosa
stampas.lab@uth.tmc.edu713-797-5765
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORArgyrios Stampas, MD, MS

The University of Texas Health Science Center and Houston

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Sep 11, 2026