Pudendal neuropathy and the importance of EMG evaluation of fecal incontinence (original) (raw)

A prospective study was undertaken to evaluate pudendal neuropathy in fecal incontinence. Fifty-two patients (38 women and 14 men) with fecal incontinence underwent manometric and electromyographic evaluation (measurement of pudendal nerve terminal motor latency [PNTML] and sphincter muscle mapping). The average age of all patients was 54 -17 years. Fifty-two percent (27/52) were found to have a pudendal neuropathy (PNTML > 2.1 milliseconds). Seventeen of these 27 patients (63 percent) had a bilateral pudendal neuropathy. Patients with a pudendal neuropathy were older than those without a neuropathy (63.7 years vs. 51.9 years; P = 0.01).