Anybody using electric stim for pelvic floor

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Hi all,
I'm a newbie here and this is my first post. Had my prostate removed in Sept. 2017 and have the urine leakage that my doctor said I should expect for up to two years (or more?) Been doing kegel exercises and making weekly visits to a physical therapist. My question deals with using an electric stimulation device that works on the pelvic floor muscles. An electrode device, lubricated with a conductive lubricant, is placed in the butt... about two inches in. The device gives small electric shocks that contract the pelvic floor with each shock. They are small shocks and not dangerous. After about 5 or 10 shocks you stop for about 15 seconds... to give the pelvic floor muscle a chance to recoup and get stronger. I've been told doing two 15 minute sessions a day is a reasonable approach.

Has anybody here used an electric stimulation device to strengthen pelvic floor muscels? ... and if so, any feedback I receive will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks... Ken

 

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I too had the surgery in July 2017. Had leakage since. I too have been doing the kegel exercises with no results. I asked my urologist about the electric stimulation. He said he does not recommend it because he has not had a patient that tried it and it worked. Very frustrating!

 

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I tried it a few years ago. It was of no help.

 

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Thanks for the feedback folks. I will keep trying it for a while and combining it with regular kegel exercises. Will post something about my efforts after about one month.

 

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I had a "clean-up" TURP in January, 2017, to deal with latent prostate issues related to my prostate cancer treatment in 2011. Since 1/2017 I have dealt with incontinence issues - primarily constant seepage and an occasional gush. My diagnosis is Stress Incontinence/Intrinsic Sphincter Deficiency.

I started doing Kegels (no PT, just on my own) last Summer, but was having constant prostate infections, so I shut everything down and took antibiotics for 12 weeks. I started back working with a therapist who specializes in pelvic floor rehab after the first of the year. Most of her clients are females, so she's still "learning the ropes" for male problems. By using biofeedback she has determined that my pelvic floor has the basic strength and endurance to "hold" my urine, but I am still having these problems. She has me doing five "quick Kegels" every hour, to try to engage my pelvic floor to "fire" when it needs to go into action. I'm about two weeks into this new routine, but it does seem to be helping. She has also mentioned doing electric stim, so I am very interest in your feedback.

One thing I really like about my PT gal is that she is making a very analytical assessment of my problem; ie. exactly what is wrong and what can we do to fix it. She wants me to have a Urodynamic test next. I'm hoping that we can figure this thing out!! As you continue your efforts I'd like to know about the progress you are making.

 

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Right after my prostate was removed in Sept. 2017, my urologist told me I would probably have urinary leakage. (He was 100 percent correct on that!) I believe that he feels his surgery went well and I could expect improvement over time. He said that dealing with it requires "Kegels, kegels, kegels, and more kegels." Like your PT, I think my female therapist does not have a well rounded knowledge of men's incontinence issues. She gives me a variety of bending and moving exercises to do while I squeeze my pelvic floor muscles/sphincter. I asked her about electric stim, but she didn't have very much to say about it and pushes for the Kegels and other "exercise". I will continue going to once a week PT, keep doing kegels, and some electric stim... and give it a few months to see where it takes me. I think it very reasonable to expect any noticeable improvements will take MANY months. I am just hopeful that things will eventually work out. Meanwhile, in addition to the physical things I am doing,... I am experimenting with a variety of diaper briefs and pads. This nafc.org is a good resource for "learning the ropes" and figuring out how best to deal with issues. We all need this kind of support. Thanks NAFC! I will try to post things from time to time and share my experiences with all. Thanks for your response "cmulwee" and good wishes a positive outcome.

 

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P.S. I just started doing some electric stim twice a day. I don't think there is any improvement I can report at this time, but I will post more on this as weeks go by.

 

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I recently purchased a K-Fit Kegel Toner for men from Amazon. Right after the prostate removal, I had been having a lot of leakage issues and went through many Depends and pads each day. Been using my new K-Fit Kegel Toner for about 4 weeks now and it seems to be helping. I do not leak at all during the night and my Depends is dry when I wake up. I change it by late afternoon and again before my evening shower. The afternoon Depends is about 25percent stained with urine leakage by evening. So, again,... I think the electric stim helps and I will do another posting in about 3 months and let all of you know how things are going. I have had 3 PSA tests since the prostate was removed and all have come back as a negative -1.

 

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Hey Kenrs, any update on the results of using the K-Fit Kegel Toner? I see it's been about 5 months since you last posted about it. I am continuing to do my regular Kegel routine, and I do continue to make progress towards regaining continence, or at least achieving less incontinence. However, I am seeing a new urologist who has me taking several different medications to control the bladder & prostate, which takes stress off the ability of my internal sphincter to do it's job.So I don't know if its the medication or the continual Kegels that's helping my progress.

If you've got any additional thoughts on the K-Fit product I'd love to hear them!!

 

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I used the K-fit device religiously, twice per day and graduated to full strength settings. I have been using it since July, 2018, My leakage is from prostate surgery 15 months ago. I have not seen any improvement in my leakage.

 

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I am not surprised but was hoping to get a better report. I found a copy of a presentation that was made at a recent urology conference regarding male incontinence. Basically it said that, if you have a damaged internal sphincter (or lissosphincter), you will have some degree of incontinence. No amount of Kegels or electrical stimulation, which only affect the external sphincter (or rhabdosphincter), can overcompensate for an internal sphincter that cannot perform it's task. It like a bad washer on your kitchen faucet. No amount of tightening the handle will stop the drip-drip-drip.

That said, I am continuing to do Kegels several days a week. I am also taking several medications (Myrbetriq, Vesicare, and Alfuzosin) that have had a positive effect on the amount of leakage I have. I'm just hoping that advances in stem cell treatments are available soon!