Factors influencing return for maintenance treatment with percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation for the management of the overactive bladder.

Objectives: To identify factors influencing return for maintenance percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS) treatment after successful completion of a 12-week course of treatment for overactive bladder (OAB).

Patients And Methods: Patients with OAB symptoms referred for PTNS treatment underwent 12 sessions of weekly PTNS treatment and were evaluated at baseline and week 12 using the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire on OAB, the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire on lower urinary tract symptom-related quality of life (ICIQ-LUTSqol) and a bladder diary (BD). Responders to treatment, evaluated using two patient-reported outcome measures, were invited to return for maintenance treatment when symptoms returned.

The role of microRNAs in the control of flowering time.

The onset of flowering in plants is regulated by complex gene networks that integrate multiple environmental and endogenous cues to ensure that flowering occurs at the appropriate time. This is achieved by precise control of the expression of key flowering genes at both the transcriptional and post-transcriptional level. In recent years, a class of small non-coding RNAs, called microRNAs (miRNAs), has been shown to regulate gene expression in a number of plant developmental processes and stress responses.