Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, Texas.
Program in Physical Therapy, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri.
J Urol. 2023 Sep;210(3):465-471. doi: 10.1097/JU.0000000000003554. Epub 2023 Jul 7.
Interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome patients can experience overactive pelvic floor muscle activity at rest. While the frequency power spectrum of pelvic floor muscle has briefly been explored, intermuscular connectivity of the pelvic floor muscle has yet to be studied, which may provide useful insight into the neurological component, ie, neural drive to muscles, in interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome.
High-density surface electromyography was collected from 15 female interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome patients with pelvic floor tenderness and 15 urologically healthy female controls. Intermuscular connectivity was calculated across the maximally active locations of the left and right sides of the pelvic floor muscle as identified from the root mean squared amplitude at rest and compared with Student tests for common sensorimotor rhythms involved in motor control: alpha (8-12 Hz), beta (13-30 Hz), and gamma (31-70 Hz) frequency bands. The root mean squared amplitudes at rest were also compared across groups.
The resting root mean squared amplitude of the pelvic floor muscle was significantly greater in female interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome patients compared to healthy female controls ( = .0046). The gamma-band intermuscular connectivity was significantly different between rest and pelvic floor muscle contraction ( = .0001) for healthy female controls, but not for female patients with interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome ( = .1214). Both results indicate an elevated neural drive to pelvic floor muscle at rest in female interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome patients.
Gamma-band pelvic floor muscle connectivity in female interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome patients is increased at rest. The results of this study may provide insight into the impaired neural drive to pelvic floor muscle implicated with interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome.
间质性膀胱炎/膀胱疼痛综合征患者在休息时可能会出现盆底肌过度活跃。虽然盆底肌的频率功率谱已经得到了简要探讨，但盆底肌的肌间连通性尚未得到研究，这可能为间质性膀胱炎/膀胱疼痛综合征的神经成分（即肌肉的神经驱动）提供有用的见解。
从 15 名患有盆底压痛的女性间质性膀胱炎/膀胱疼痛综合征患者和 15 名泌尿科健康的女性对照者中采集高密度表面肌电图。从休息时均方根幅度确定的左侧和右侧盆底肌最大活动部位计算肌间连通性，并与涉及运动控制的常见感觉运动节律的学生 t 检验进行比较：alpha（8-12 Hz）、beta（13-30 Hz）和 gamma（31-70 Hz）频段。还比较了两组在休息时的均方根幅度。
与健康女性对照组相比，女性间质性膀胱炎/膀胱疼痛综合征患者的盆底肌休息时均方根幅度显著增加（=.0046）。健康女性对照组在休息和盆底肌肉收缩时，gamma 波段肌间连通性有显著差异（=.0001），而间质性膀胱炎/膀胱疼痛综合征女性患者则无显著差异（=.1214）。这两个结果都表明女性间质性膀胱炎/膀胱疼痛综合征患者在休息时盆底肌的神经驱动增加。
女性间质性膀胱炎/膀胱疼痛综合征患者的 gamma 波段盆底肌连通性在休息时增加。本研究的结果可能为间质性膀胱炎/膀胱疼痛综合征中涉及的盆底肌受损神经驱动提供深入了解。
