Urgency Urinary SymptomsBLISSNCT07569822
Effect of Vibrator Use on Symptoms of Urgency Urinary Incontinence, Sexual Function, and Sleep
A study testing Vibrator and Behavioral modification in people with Urgency Urinary Symptoms, run by Albany Medical College.
Trial summary
This study aims to understand if using a vibrator affects urgency related urinary incontinence. Insights from this study may open new recommendations for treating urinary urgency and incontinence. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 years and older, women only
- Conditions the study is for
- Urgency Urinary Symptoms
- What is being tested?
- Vibrator and Behavioral modification
- Type of treatment
- Medical device, Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 116 participants
- Where
- No sites listed yet
- Study dates
- 1 Jul 2026to 30 Jun 2028
- Phase
- Interventional
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 years and older
- Women only
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Assigned female at birth.
- Age ≥18 years.
- Able to read and speak English.
- Diagnosis of urgency urinary incontinence or mixed urinary incontinence (based on clinical assessment and UDI-6 urgency questions).
- Leaks urine at least once per week due to urgency.
- Postvoid residual volume <100 mL or a third of the voided volume
Who cannot join
- Pelvic organ prolapse beyond the hymen
- Neurogenic bladder, multiple sclerosis, or other neurologic causes of incontinence.
- Recurrent urinary tract infection (>3 UTIs in the past year or >2 in the past 6 months).
- Active urinary tract infection at the time of enrollment.
- Interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome.
- Current use of sacral neuromodulation or percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS).
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- Bladder Botox injection within the past 6 months.
- Vibrator use within the past 3 months.
- Patients uncomfortable with vibrator use
- Pregnancy or plans for pregnancy during the study period.
Trial locations and contacts
No sites are listed yet. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
About this study
This study aims to understand if using a vibrator affects urgency related urinary incontinence. Insights from this study may open new recommendations for treating urinary urgency and incontinence.
Read the detailed description
This is a randomized superiority trial designed to evaluate the efficacy of scheduled vibrator use as an adjunct to standard lifestyle and behavioral modifications for urgency urinary incontinence (UUI) or urgency-predominant mixed urinary incontinence (MUI). UUI is defined as involuntary urine leakage preceded by a sudden, compelling urge to void. This will be identified and confirmed by patient report and screening with urgency-related items on the Urogenital Distress Inventory-6 (UDI-6), with participants required to report urgency-related leakage at least once per week.
Eligible participants will be recruited from the Albany Medical Center Urogynecology clinic during routine outpatient visits. After informed consent and baseline assessment, participants will be randomized 1:1 to either (1) lifestyle and bladder training counseling alone (control arm) or (2) lifestyle and bladder training counseling plus scheduled vibrator use (intervention arm). Participants in the intervention group will be instructed to use a provided FDA-registered Class II wellness vibrator for 5-10 minutes at least three times per week over an eight-week period, while all participants will receive standardized bladder retraining education materials. The primary outcome measure will be change in UDI-6 score, Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI), and Brief Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (B-PSQI) from baseline to eight weeks. Secondary outcomes will include validated assessments of quality of life and distress, including the Pelvic Organ Prolapse/Urinary Incontinence Sexual Questionnaire (PISQ-12), Patient Global Impression of Improvement (PGI-I), Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4).
The study will be conducted at Albany Medical Center, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Urogynecology and Pelvic Reconstructive Surgery, following approval by the Institutional Review Board (IRB).
- Conditions
- Urgency Urinary Symptoms
- Being tested
- Vibrator, Behavioral modification
- Keywords
- incontinence
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
VibratorDevice
Scheduled vibrator use
Behavioral modificationBehavioural
Guideline based standard lifestyle and behavioral modifications for urgency urinary incontinence
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Lifestyle and behavioral modifications | Active comparator | Lifestyle and behavioral modifications Receives: Behavioral: Behavioral modification |
| Scheduled vibrator use | Experimental | Standard behavioral modifications and vibrator use Receives: Device: Vibrator; Behavioral: Behavioral modification |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Change in score on UDI-6 from baseline to follow-up in 8 weeks.
Submitted
Measured: 12 weeks
Secondary outcomes (6)
Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI)
The Female Sexual Function Index is a 19-item questionnaire assessing domains of sexual function including desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain. Scores range from 2 to 36, with higher scores indicating better sexual function and lower likelihood of dysfunction.
Measured: 12 weeks
Brief Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (B-PSQI)
The Brief Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index is a shortened version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index that evaluates sleep quality and disturbances over a recent time period. Scores typically range from 0 to 15 (depending on version), with higher scores indicating worse sleep quality.
Measured: 12 weeks
Pelvic Organ Prolapse/Urinary Incontinence Sexual Questionnaire, IUGA-Revised (PISQ-IR)
The PISQ-IR assesses sexual function in women with pelvic floor disorders and includes separate scoring for sexually active and non-sexually active individuals. Scores vary by domain, but are generally transformed to a 0-100 scale, with higher scores indicating better sexual function and condition-specific quality of life.
Measured: 12 weeks
Patient Global Impression of Improvement (PGI-I)
The Patient Global Impression of Improvement is a single-item scale that asks patients to rate their condition after treatment compared to baseline. It ranges from 1 (very much better) to 7 (very much worse), with lower scores indicating better outcomes/improvement.
Measured: 12 weeks
Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4)
The Patient Health Questionnaire-4 is an ultra-brief screening tool combining 2 items for anxiety and 2 for depression. Scores range from 0 to 12, with higher scores indicating greater psychological distress.
Measured: 12 weeks
International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-Short Form (ICIQ-SF)
The International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-Short Form evaluates the frequency, severity, and impact of urinary incontinence on quality of life. Scores range from 0 to 21, with higher scores indicating more severe symptoms and worse quality of life impact.
Measured: 12 weeks
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted6 May 2026
- Study start1 Jul 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion31 Dec 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion30 Jun 2028 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Urgency Urinary SymptomsStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 116 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Albany Medical College
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07569822
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 7438
- Acronym
- BLISS
- Status last verified
- Apr 2026
- First submitted
- 21 Apr 2026
- Last updated
- 6 May 2026
- Results posted
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- Yes
- Individual data sharing
- No