Transcutaneous Electrical Acupoint Stimulation for Postoperative Urinary Retention After Radical Surgery for Cervical Cancer

NCT07235371 | Recruiting DMC

• 1 other identifier: IRB-2025-1262
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 76
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This is a prospective, blinded, single-center, randomized controlled trial. We will include 76 patients with postoperative urinary retention (POUR) after radical hysterectomy for cervical cancer who have a clear diagnosis and meet the screening criteria as the research object. They will be randomly divided into the transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation（TEAS）group and the sham TEAS group according to a 1:1 ratio. Each group consists of 38 patients, and all patients will be required to sign a written informed consent form. The TEAS group will be treated with TEAS based on conventional treatment, and the sham TEAS group will be treated with shamTEAS based on conventional treatment. The main outcomes will be the changes in post-void residual (PVR) volume; secondary indicators will include the response rate of participants with successful urinary catheter removal after intervention, assessment of urinary tract infection (UTI), and patient quality of life assessment according to the EORTC QLQ-C30 scale. The participants will also be evaluated with expectations, blind evaluation, compliance evaluation, and safety evaluation to preliminarily evaluate the effect of TEAS for postoperative urinary retention after radical hysterectomy for cervical cancer.

Conditions

Postoperative Urinary Retention (POUR)

Keywords

Postoperative urinary retention,; POUR; TEAS; transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• The change in post-void residual (PVR) volume of the bladder

  It will use a direct measurement method to detect residual urine volume in the bladder.

  week 2 (after intervention), and week 4 （follow-up）

Secondary Outcomes (4)

• The response rate of participants who will successfully remove the urinary catheter

  week 2 （after intervention）

• The proportion of patients who have a urinary tract infection (UTI).

  Week 0 (baseline), week 2 (after intervention), and week 4 （follow-up）

• The evaluation of the quality of life

  week 0 (baseline), week 2 (after intervention), and week 4 （follow-up）

• Safety Assessment

  week 2 （after intervention）, and week 4 (follow-up)

Other Outcomes (3)

• Participant Expectation Value Evaluation

  week 0 (baseline)

• Blinding evaluation

  week 2（after intervention）

• Participant compliance assessment

  week 2 （after intervention）and week 4（follow-up）

Study Arms (2)

The TEAS Group

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants will receive TEAS treatment once a day for two consecutive weeks. TEAS stimulation: A set of TEAS patch stimulation will be applied to BL32 and BL34 points on both sides of the spine respectively, with an intensity of approximately 30 ± 5mA, based on patient tolerance. The frequency will be 2/10Hz.

Other: transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation

The Sham TEAS Group

PLACEBO COMPARATOR

Participants will receive sham TEAS treatment once a day for two consecutive weeks. The operation of the sham TEA group will be consistent with that of the TEAS group, with a current intensity set to 30mA. However, the instrument circuit of the fake TEAS group cannot output current normally, and participants can only feel patches stimulating at the BL32 and BL34 acupoints.

Other: Sham transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation

Interventions

Sham transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation OTHER

Participants will receive sham TEAS treatment once a day for two consecutive weeks. The operation of the sham TEAS group will be consistent with that of the TEAS group, with a current intensity set at 30 mA. However, the instrument circuit of the fake TEAS group cannot output current normally, and participants can only feel patches stimulating at the BL32 and BL34 acupoints.

Also known as: Sham TEAS

The Sham TEAS Group

transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation OTHER

Participants will receive TEAS treatment once a day for two consecutive weeks. TEAS stimulation: A set of TEAS patch stimulation will be applied to BL32 and BL34 points on both sides of the spine respectively, with an intensity of approximately 30 ± 5mA, based on patient tolerance. The frequency will be 2/10Hz.

Also known as: TEAS

The TEAS Group

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 70 Years
• Sex: female
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• (1) Age range of 18-70 years, expected survival period ≥ 6 months; (2) Meets diagnostic criteria, with an indwelling catheter duration of more than 14 days but less than 1 year; (3) No history of urinary system diseases before surgery; (4) Clear consciousness, unobstructed communication, daily living ability, patients or family members can learn TEAS operation; (5) No serious systemic diseases such as heart, liver, brain, kidney, etc; (6) Karnofsky functional status score (KPS) ≥ 70 points; (7) Voluntarily participate and sign a written informed consent form.

You may not qualify if:

• (1) Obstructive urinary retention, such as urethral stricture or stones; (2) combined with other serious systemic diseases, advanced cachexia; (3) Patients with pacemaker implantation or metal implantation in the body; (4) The treatment site has skin lesions or is not suitable for TEAS treatment in other populations; (5) Physical or mental disorders with cognitive impairment; (6) Other clinical trial participants who are currently involved in affecting the results of this study; (7) Those who do not agree to participate in clinical trials; (8) The evaluator has determined that the participant is not suitable to participate in this study.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Lu Chao: lead

Study Sites (1)

Zhejiang Cancer Hospital

Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310022, China

RECRUITING

Central Study Contacts

Chao Lu

CONTACT

15869128904; luchao@zjcc.org.cn

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: TRIPLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT, INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Clinical Professor

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: November 14, 2025
• First Posted: November 19, 2025
• Study Start: November 18, 2025
• Primary Completion (Estimated): November 30, 2028
• Study Completion (Estimated): November 30, 2028
• Last Updated: February 6, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-02

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

CN (1)