Timing umbilical therapy in treatment of neurogenic bladder after spinal cord injury based on midnight-noon and ebb-flow doctrine: a randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: To observe the clinical efficacy of timing umbilical therapy for neurogenic bladder after spinal cord injury based on the midnight-noon and ebb-flow doctrine.

Methods: Sixty patients with neurogenic bladder after spinal cord injury were randomly divided into a trial group and a control group, with 30 patients in each group. In the trial group, based on the midnight-noon and ebb-flow doctrine, umbilical therapy was given at the time zone, 15:00 to 17:00. In the control group, umbilical therapy was delivered at any time zones except the period 15:00 to 17:00. The herbal plaster was remained on the umbilicus for 4 h each time, once daily. One course of treatment was composed of 2 weeks and the treatment lasted 4 weeks. Before and after treatment, the urodynamic indexes (maximum urinary flow rate [Qmax], maximum detrusor pressure [Pdet-max], residual urine volume [RUV]), voiding diary (average daily number of voiding, average daily number of leakage, average daily voided volume), neurogenic bladder symptom score (NBSS), the score of urinary symptom distress scale (USDS) and the score of World Health Organization quality of life assessment-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) were compared between the two groups; and the clinical efficacy of the two groups was assessed.

Results: After treatment, Qmax, Pdet-max, the average daily voided volume and the scores of WHOQOL-BREF were increased (<0.05); and RUV, the average daily number of voiding, the average daily number of leakage, NBSS and the scores of USDS were all reduced (<0.05) in comparison with those before treatment in the two groups. When compared with those in the control group, Qmax, Pdet-max, the average daily voided volume and the score of WHOQOL-BREF were all higher (0.05); and RUV, the average daily number of voiding, the average daily number of leakage, NBSS and the score of USDS were lower (0.05) in the trial group. The total effective rate was 96.7% (29/30) in the trial group, higher than that (76.7%, 23/30) in the control group (0.05).

Conclusions: Timing umbilical therapy, based on the midnight-noon and ebb-flow doctrine, effectively relieves the symptoms of dysuria and improves the quality of life in patients with neurogenic bladder after spinal cord injury.