Patients with interstitial cystitis who received superior hypogastric plexus pulsed radiofrequency and transcutaneous tibial nerve stimulation.

Group 2 included patients with interstitial cystitis who received only superior hypogastric plexus pulsed radiofrequency.

The L5-S1 intervertebral space was visualized using fluoroscopy. A 22G, 15 cm injection needle was advanced along the bilateral disc, and under lateral imaging, the needle position was confirmed anterior to the vertebral bodies. 2 ml of contrast solution was injected to confirm the correct needle placement, and then 8 mg of dexamethasone and 40 mg of bupivacaine (0.25%) were injected separately on each side. Two weeks later, patients who showed more than 50% improvement from the diagnostic block, as assessed by NRS, underwent a superior hypogastric pulsed radiofrequency procedure using a transdiscal technique with a 22G, 15 cm, 10 mm active-tipped radiofrequency needle at 42°C for 120 seconds. Two 50x50 mm electrode pads were placed on the posterior-superior aspect of the medial malleolus for posterior tibial nerve stimulation. Stimulation was delivered in continuous mode at a frequency of 20 Hz and a pulsed width of 200 ms. It was applied once a week for 30 min for 4 weeks.

NRS is a scale used to evaluate pain severity. Pain severity is evaluated between 0 and 10. A high score indicates a bad result.

DN4 is a screening questionnaire to help identify neuropathic pain in clinical practice and research.

This leads to a score range of 0-10 when the symptoms (range 0-7 points) as well as the signs (range 0-3 points) items are included. A high score indicates a bad result.

The ICSI contains 4 items that measure urgency and frequency of urination, nighttime urination, and pain or burning. The ICSI score is is evaluated between 0 and 20. A high score indicates a bad result.

ICPI is a form that investigates how much problems the symptoms of interstitial cystitis cause. ICPI score is evaluated between 0 and 16. A high score indicates a bad result.