Correlation of bladder wall thickness and treatment success in types of urinary incontinence

Introduction and hypothesis

The aim of the study was to investigate the correlation between mean bladder wall thickness (BWT) and treatment success in patients diagnosed with urinary incontinence, based on urodynamic test results.

Methods

In this prospective study, patient urinary incontinence type was identified using urodynamic tests. Patients (N?=?125) were categorized into three groups: urodynamic stress incontinence (SUI), detrusor over-activity (DO) and mixed urinary incontinence. Measurements from the bladder dome, anterior wall and trigone were averaged to calculate BWT. Student’s t test and Mann–Whitney U test were used to compare pre-treatment BWT. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to determine optimal cut-off values for BWT to predict treatment success.

Results

Mean pre-treatment BWT significantly differed between success and non-success groups for each urinary incontinence type (p value for the SUI, DO and MUI groups was 0.043, 0.001 and 0.002 respectively). Using ROC curves to anticipate the treatment success, a threshold was calculated for mean pre-treatment BWT; 5.05 mm for SUI (sensitivity 74 %, specificity 66 %, positive predictive value PPV] 85 %, negative predictive value NPV] 50 %), 4.98 mm for DO (sensitivity 73 %, specificity 92 %, PPV 95 %, NPV 63 %) and 5.31 mm for mixed type (sensitivity 88 %, specificity 73 %, PPV 79 %, NPV 85 %).

Conclusions

The study results suggest a significant relationship between the pre-treatment BWT and the success of urinary incontinence treatment. The mean BWT may be used as a benchmark in assessing the responsiveness to treatment of urinary incontinence types.