Vim & Vigor - Fall 2021 - 5

ILLUSTRATION BY GETTY IMAGES; PHOTOS BY UVA HEALTH
5
Say Goodbye
to Embarrassing
Leaks
More women are
eligible for an implant
that can sometimes
bring " magical " results
BY KELLY CASEY
M
An implant helps
the brain better
communicate with
the bladder or
bowel so it can
function properly.
agical is not a description you
oſt en hear in healthcare. But
that's how Elisa Trowbridge,
MD, describes a procedure she off ers
for women experiencing urine and
bowel leakage.
" It's eff ective for overactive bladder
issues, but for bowel
leakage, it still continues
to be magical. In the right
patient, it's a cure for
bowel leakage, " says Dr.
Trowbridge, a UVA Health
urogynecologist and pelvic
medicine specialist. She's talking
about a pacemaker-like device that
stimulates the sacral nerve to help
the bladder, anal sphincter and pelvic
fl oor muscles to work more eff ectively
together.
Dr. Trowbridge and her colleagues
started implanting the InterStim device
a decade ago. New innovations have
now made the implant compatible with
MRI (magnetic resonance imaging),
and for that reason more people can
be off ered this therapy. In the past,
for anyone with medical issues that
required a body or spinal MRI each
UVA Health Urogynecology Experts
Turn to an Expert at UVA
An InterStim implant can help you regain control of your bladder
Elisa
Trowbridge, MD
Monique
Vaughan, MD
and bowel. This two-step procedure requires the same sedation used
for screening colonoscopies. Learn more and meet the experts at
uvahealth.com/interstim.
year, the InterStim was not a good
option. " Previously, approximately
one-third of the patients were not candidates
for this therapy, but these new
advancements have made this therapy
available to most all patients with urinary
and bowel complaints who do not
improve with conservative measures "
such as lifestyle modifi cations, medication
and pelvic fl oor therapy,
Dr. Trowbridge says.
Another recent development means
women can choose a model that off ers
a rechargeable battery that lasts up to
15 years. To recharge, a woman needs
to wear a strap around her waist once
a week for 45 minutes. Th e nonrechargeable
model is still available but
requires women to come to UVA every
six or seven years for a 20-minute procedure
to have a new battery installed.
" We're fi nding that a lot of patients
are still choosing the device that they
don't have to charge. Th is is especially
true for busy moms, those in school
or working, or those who just want to
minimize the regular maintenance of
the device, " says Monique Vaughan,
MD, a UVA Health urogynecologist
and pelvic medicine specialist and
colleague of Dr. Trowbridge.
Th ough urinary and bowel incontinence
becomes more common as a
person ages, young women can have
issues, for example, due to a diffi -
cult childbirth. Incontinence is also
common among women who have
neurological conditions such as multiple
sclerosis or Parkinson's disease.
" Trouble emptying the bladder is
another reason we implant InterStim
for those with MS or Parkinson's, " Dr.
Vaughan says. " Th is therapy can greatly
improve or cure patients from having
to self-catheterize one time a day
instead of four times a day. " *
VIM & VIGOR FALL 2021
http://www.uvahealth.com/interstim
Vim & Vigor - Fall 2021

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