Abstract
Stress, anxiety, depression and patient perception play critical roles in bothersome urinary urgency and related syndromes overactive bladder and bladder pain syndrome. A robust body of brain imaging literature has identified brain changes that occur in patients with urinary urgency and urgency incontinence, and conversely, brain changes that occur after successful treatment of urinary urgency. In an effort to directly target the role central nervous system (CNS) abnormalities in urinary urgency, which occur in regions for high-order function areas for attention, awareness, emotion, and interoception, mindfulness therapies have emerged as a promising treatment option. Mindfulness is the practice of nonreactive awareness of thoughts and sensations, which may reorient cognitive and emotional responses to bladder sensations. Recent studies examining mindfulness therapy for urinary urgency show promising results for a conservative intervention that directly targets the relevant CNS mechanisms now being elucidated.
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Drs. Adelstein and Lee declare no conflict of interests.
Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent
All studies by author Una J. Lee and Sarah A. Adelstein (formerly Mitchell) involving human and animal subjects were performed after approval by the appropriate institutional review boards. When required, written informed consent was obtained from all participants.
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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Overactive Bladder
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Adelstein, S.A., Lee, U.J. The Role of Mindfulness in Urinary Urgency Symptoms. Curr Bladder Dysfunct Rep 11, 38–44 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11884-016-0348-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11884-016-0348-5