|
Health
and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson announced that
Medicare coverage will be extended to include a surgical treatment
known as sacral nerve stimulation for urinary incontinence.
"This
is especially important because incontinence affects so many
Medicare beneficiaries, and this procedure can significantly
improve many people's quality of life," Thompson said.
Urinary
incontinence affects approximately 13 million adults in the
United States, and is twice as prevalent in women as it is
in men.
Under
the newly approved treatment, an electrical pulse generator
about the size of a pacemaker is implanted in the abdominal
wall of a patient, with a wire leading to the sacral nerves,
which help control bladder contractions. Electrical impulses
are transmitted from the generator to the sacral nerves through
the implanted wire. These impulses control contractions of
the bladder muscle, giving the patient the ability to regulate
contractions that cause incontinence.
A Medicare
beneficiary with urge incontinence, In order to be eligible
for this procedure, have failed more conservative treatments,
such as behavioral modifications, drug therapy or other surgical
interventions.
The scientific
and clinical evidence regarding the clinical value of sacral
nerve stimulation was sufficient to support coverage of this
technology for Medicare beneficiaries nationwide, a spokesman
said.
Source:
Medical Week staff,
week of July 1, 2001
|
HOME PAGE
