Overactive Bladder Control without Surgery or Drugs!


Most women are so embarrassed about their condition that they don’t discuss it with their doctor. In fact, statistics show that only 1 in 3 will talk about it with their health care professional. It can occur at any age, from young to old. Because most people do not know that it can be helped occurred, or don’t feel comfortable discussing it, they start wearing absorbent pads and diapers or limit normal daily activities to avoid leakage. Many people believe that OAB is a normal part of aging. Regardless of your OAB symptoms or age, there is help!

Dr. Robert Pugach encourages women who are suffering with bladder control problems to seek treatment. There are many minimally invasive treatment options that can help you control your symptoms and, in many cases, cure your Overactive Bladder (OAB). These state-of-the-art advanced treatments do not require surgery and can be dramatically more effective than often prescribed, expensive medications. Posterior Tibial Nerve Stimulation or PTNS is one of these remarkable treatments.

WHAT IS PTNS AND HOW CAN IT HELP MY OVERACTIVE BLADDER SYMPTOMS?

Posterior Tibial Nerve Stimulation is a series of acupuncture treatments that stimulate a nerve located behind your medial ankle bone. The Chinese call it the “Kidney – Bladder Pathway.” Approved for use in the United States by the FDA, it can significantly reduce or eliminate OAB symptoms like sudden, frequent urges to urinate or urine leakage from urge incontinence.

The Urgent PC® Neuromodulation System delivers gentle electrical stimulation of the posterior tibial nerve. The system is a combination of a hand-held stimulator, a thin needle electrode and a connecting lead set. The stimulator generates electrical impulses that are delivered to the nerve through the lead set. This process is also referred to as neuromodulation.

Treatment consists of 30-minute weekly sessions for 12 weeks. Typically, it takes about 6 weeks for symptoms to change, but improvement is faster for some patients. It’s important to receive all 12 treatments to know if PTNS is right for you. If you experience improvement, as most patients do, then PTNS maintenance stimulation is usually performed once every 3 to 4 weeks for up to two years.

HOW EFFECTIVE IS PTNS IN CONTROLLING OAB SYMPTOMS?

Controlled medical studies have shown that 50-60% of patients improve with Urgent PC® treatment. Improvements are seen as a reduction in the frequency and urgency of bathroom visits (both during the day and at night) and in the number of “accidents” patients have when urine leaks uncontrollably.

HOW IS PTNS PERFORMED AND WHAT WILL I FEEL DURING TREATMENT?

A slim needle electrode is placed into the nerve near your ankle while you are seated. The needle electrode is connected to a battery-powered stimulator which delivers mild electrical impulses that travel up the nerves in the leg to the nerves in your pelvis that control the bladder. Patients usually feel a mild tingling sensation in the foot or ankle during therapy. Side effects are rare and include a temporary mild burning sensation pain or skin inflammation at or near the stimulation site.

IS PTNS COVERED BY HEALTH INSURANCE?

PTNS is covered by Medicare and by many other health insurance companies. Pacific Coast Urology’s financial counselor can check your insurance benefits for you. If treatment is not covered, or if you do not have insurance, we offer affordable cash pricing.

Overactive bladder control problems in women are one of the many conditions we treat in our Women’s Bladder Control Center of Excellence.  

To determine if you are a candidate for PTNS to treat OAB,
 Call, 888.735.4336 or email us via our Contact Us Form.