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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Neurosci.
Sec. Brain Imaging Methods
Volume 19 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fnins.2025.1436172

Real-time changes in brain activity during sacral neuromodulation for overactive bladder ： Evidence from near infrared spectroscopy

Provisionally accepted
Runtian Luo Runtian Luo 1Limin Liao Limin Liao 1,2*
  • 1 Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
  • 2 Department of Urology, China Rehabilitation Research Center, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Objective: This study aimed to use functional near-infrared spectors (fNIRS) to identify changes in brain activity during sacral neuromodulation (SNM) in patients with overactive bladder (OAB) responsive to therapy. Methods: Adopt the prospective trial method, take the idiopathic OAB patients selected for SNM treatment in our center as the experimental group, and the healthy adults matched with gender and age as the healthy control (HC) group. All subjects completed 72 hour urination diaries, overactive bladder symptom scores(OABSS) and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) scans in resting and task states, and synchronous urodynamic monitoring. Results: 1. A total of 10 patients with HC and 12 patients with OAB were included.The average number of 24-hour urination, urgency, incontinence and OABSS score in the OAB group were significantly higher than those in the HC group. The urination diary parameters, OABSS and urodynamic parameters in the successful OAB group after SNM treatment were significantly improved compared with those before operation.2. Task fNIRS results: compared with HC group, BA9 (left dorsolateral prefrontal lobe) was significantly inactivated in successful OAB group before SNM treatment; Compared with HC, there was no significant difference in brain activation after SNM treatment in the successful OAB group; BA9 (left dorsolateral prefrontal lobe) and BA 45 (left inferior frontal gyrus trigone) were significantly activated after SNM treatment in the successful OAB group compared with before treatment.3. Resting fNIRS results: compared with the HC group, the FC in PFC of the successful OAB group was significantly weakened in the empty or filled bladder state before SNM treatment and returned to normal after SNM treatment. Compared with HC group, there was no significant difference in FC of OAB patients in bladder empty state after treatment, and FC was significantly activated in strong desire of voiding.We found abnormal deactivation of FC in PFC and left dorsolateral prefrontal lobe (BA9). SNM restored the functional connectivity of the left dorsolateral frontal lobe, the left inferior frontal gyrus trigone, and the interior of the prefrontal lobe in patients with OAB, which may be one of the central mechanisms of SNM treatment for OAB.

    Keywords: Sacral neuromodulation, Urodynamics, overactive bladder, Sacral neuromodulation (SNM), fNIRS (functional near infrared spectroscopy)

    Received: 21 May 2024; Accepted: 03 Feb 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Luo and Liao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Limin Liao, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China

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