Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Rectal neoplasia is one of the most prevalent cancers in Spain, and the treatment of choice is total mesorectal excision (TME), as it has demonstrated significant oncological improvements. However, mesorectal excision is not without complications, and patients often experience altered bowel function in the form of low anterior resection syndrome (LARS), as well as erectile dysfunction. However, few studies evaluate faecal incontinence, as most focus on oncological outcomes.
The aim of our study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of posterior tibial nerve stimulation on fecal incontinence, sexual dysfunction, and quality of life in patients who underwent to rectal surgery for rectal neoplasia.
It will be conducted a randomized clinical trial (1:1) with two arms: half of the patients will receive posterior tibial nerve stimulation, while the other half will undergo stimulation with subtherapeutic doses. Faecal incontinence will be assessed using the LARS and Wexner questionnaires, and quality of life and sexual function will be assessed using the Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Scale (FIQLS) and the Colorectal Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ-CR38), at one month, six months and one year after surgery.
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
| Label | Type | Description | Intervention Names |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intervention group | Experimental | Posterior tibial nerve stimulation with Beurer EM-49 digital neuroestimulator at complete doses |
|
| Control group | Sham Comparator | Posterior tibial nerve stimulation with Beurer EM-49 digital neuroestimulator at subtherapeutic doses |
|
| Name | Type | Description | Arm Group Labels | Other Names |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Posterior tibial nerve stimulation intervention group | Device | In the intervention group, Beurer EM-49 digital neurostimulator will be used, with CE marking, and a dose of 20 Hertz (Hz) - 200 microseconds (μs) will be applied. As the control group and the intervention group, the pelvic floor rehabilitator will program the neurostimulator for each case and then they will be trained on how to perform the neurostimulation. The first session will be carried out with the rehabilitator to learn how it works and resolve doubts about its use, and later the sessions will be carried out at home. In both groups, a program for carrying out sessions will be indicated according to the following scheme:
|
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Faecal incontinence (FI) - LARS 1st month | Assessed by LARS questionnaire Low anterior resection syndrome (LARS): LARS scale consists of 5 questions: gas incontinence (0,4,7 points), liquid incontinence (0,3,3 points), stool frequency (4,2,0,5 points), defecation fractionation (0,9,11 points) and defecatory urgency (0, 11,16 points). The score range is between 0 and 42 points. Patients are categorized into three groups: no LARS (0 to 20 points), mild LARS (21 to 29 points) and severe LARS (30 to 42 points). | 1st month post-surgery |
| Faecal incontinence (FI) - LARS 6th month | Assessed by LARS questionnaire Low anterior resection syndrome (LARS): LARS scale consists of 5 questions: gas incontinence (0,4,7 points), liquid incontinence (0,3,3 points), stool frequency (4,2,0,5 points), defecation fractionation (0,9,11 points) and defecatory urgency (0, 11,16 points). The score range is between 0 and 42 points. Patients are categorized into three groups: no LARS (0 to 20 points), mild LARS (21 to 29 points) and severe LARS (30 to 42 points). | 6th month post-surgery |
| Faecal incontinence (FI) - LARS 12th month | Assessed by LARS questionnaire Low anterior resection syndrome (LARS): LARS scale consists of 5 questions: gas incontinence (0,4,7 points), liquid incontinence (0,3,3 points), stool frequency (4,2,0,5 points), defecation fractionation (0,9,11 points) and defecatory urgency (0, 11,16 points). The score range is between 0 and 42 points. Patients are categorized into three groups: no LARS (0 to 20 points), mild LARS (21 to 29 points) and severe LARS (30 to 42 points). | 12th month post-surgery |
| Feacal incontinence (FI) - Wexner 1st month | Assessed by Wexner questionnaire. Wexner scale consists of 5 questions (range 0-4): incontinence of solid stools, incontinence of liquid stools, incontinence of gases, use of pads or diapers and alteration of social life. Depending on the frequency, a score of 0 to 4 is assigned. The score can range from 0 to 20 points, considering no incontinence as 0 to 2 points, mild incontinence as a result of 3 to 6 points, moderate incontinence as 7 to 11 points and severe incontinence as a result greater than or equal to 12 points. |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Sexual impairment 1st month | Assessed by QLQ-CR38 questionnaire (question 17-18 for both sexes, 20-21 for men and 22-23 for women). Each question can be answered from 1 to 4 points. And then is it calculated in the sexual impairment analysis (symptoms area) | 1st month post-surgery |
| Sexual impairment - 6th month |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Patient's characteristics | Age at diagnosis (years), sex (man/woman), height (m), weight (kg), BMI (kg/m2), prior anorectal disease (yes and not, if yes should specify) | At the enrollment |
| Concomitant medication for stool |
Inclusion Criteria:
- Adult patients diagnosed with rectal neoplasia and who have undergone a high anterior rectal resection regardless of the surgical approach (open, laparoscopic, laparoscopic+TaTME or robotic+TaTME).
Exclusion Criteria:
Patients not operated or within active surveillance strategy programs (watch & wait)
Patients with ostomy
Patients with contraindications to the use of the neurostimulator:
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
| Name | Role | Phone | Extension | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Meritxell Font | Contact | +34 676131774 | meritxell.fontprat@gmail.com |
Not provided
| Facility | Status | City | State | ZIP | Country | Contacts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Althaia Xarxa Assistencial Universitària de Manresa | Recruiting | Manresa | Barcelona | 08243 | Spain |
Not provided
| Label | URL |
|---|---|
| Sociedad Española de Oncología Médica (SEOM). Las cifras del càncer en España. 2024. | View source |
| El cáncer en España, datos y estadísticas. Epdata. | View source |
| Ma B, Gao P, Song Y, Zhang C, Zhang C, Wang L, et al. Transanal total mesorectal excision (taTME) for rectal cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis of oncological and perioperative outcomes compared with laparoscopic total mesorectal excision. |
Not provided
It is planned to publish the complete result data without providing specific participant data.
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
| Type | Includes Protocol | Includes SAP | Includes ICF | Document Label | Document Date | Document Uploaded Date | Document File Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prot_SAP | Yes | Yes | No | Study Protocol and Statistical Analysis Plan | Aug 27, 2025 |
Not provided
Randomized clinical trial (1:1) with two arms
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
|
| Control group | Device | In the intervention group, Beurer EM-49 digital neurostimulator will be used, with CE marking; and a dose of 80 Hertz (Hz) - 150 microseconds (μs) will be applied. As the control group and the intervention group, the pelvic floor rehabilitator will program the neurostimulator for each case and then they will be trained on how to perform the neurostimulation. In order to apply the therapy, the patient must sit down for the placement of the electrodes. It will be performed on 2 feet at the same time. The first session will be carried out with the rehabilitator to learn how it works and resolve doubts about its use, and later the sessions will be carried out at home. In both groups, a program for carrying out sessions will be indicated according to the following scheme:
|
|
| 1st month post-surgery |
| Faecal incontinence (FI) - Wexner 6th month | Assessed by Wexner questionnaire. Wexner scale consists of 5 questions (range 0-4): incontinence of solid stools, incontinence of liquid stools, incontinence of gases, use of pads or diapers and alteration of social life. Depending on the frequency, a score of 0 to 4 is assigned. The score can range from 0 to 20 points, considering no incontinence as 0 to 2 points, mild incontinence as a result of 3 to 6 points, moderate incontinence as 7 to 11 points and severe incontinence as a result greater than or equal to 12 points. | 6th month post-surgery |
| Faecal incontinece (FI) - Wexner 12th month | Assessed by Wexner questionnaire. Wexner scale consists of 5 questions (range 0-4): incontinence of solid stools, incontinence of liquid stools, incontinence of gases, use of pads or diapers and alteration of social life. Depending on the frequency, a score of 0 to 4 is assigned. The score can range from 0 to 20 points, considering no incontinence as 0 to 2 points, mild incontinence as a result of 3 to 6 points, moderate incontinence as 7 to 11 points and severe incontinence as a result greater than or equal to 12 points. | 12th month post-surgery |
Assessed by QLQ-CR38 questionnaire (question 17-18 for both sexes, 20-21 for men and 22-23 for women). Each question can be answered from 1 to 4 points. And then is it calculated in the sexual impairment analysis (symptoms area) |
| 6th month post-surgery |
| Sexual impairment - 12th month | Assessed by QLQ-CR38 questionnaire (question 17-18 for both sexes, 20-21 for men and 22-23 for women). Each question can be answered from 1 to 4 points. And then is it calculated in the sexual impairment analysis (symptoms area) | 12th month post-surgery |
| Quality of life (QoL) - FIQLS 1st month | Assessed by: -Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Scale(FIQLS):composed of 29 items that evaluate 4 health dimensions:lifestyle(10 items),behavior(9 items),depression/self-esteem(7 items) and shame(3 items).Each item has a range from 1 to 5,with 1 being the minimum value for the quality of life state. | 1st month post-surgery |
| Quality of life (QoL) - FIQLS 6th month | Assessed by: -Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Scale(FIQLS):composed of 29 items that evaluate 4 health dimensions:lifestyle(10 items),behavior(9 items),depression/self-esteem(7 items) and shame(3 items).Each item has a range from 1 to 5,with 1 being the minimum value for the quality of life state | 6th month post-surgery |
| Quality of life (QoL) - FIQLS 12th month | Assessed by: -Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Scale(FIQLS):composed of 29 items that evaluate 4 health dimensions:lifestyle(10 items),behavior(9 items),depression/self-esteem(7 items) and shame(3 items).Each item has a range from 1 to 5,with 1 being the minimum value for the quality of life state | 12th month post-surgery |
| Quality of life (QoL) - QLQ-CR 38 1st month | Assessed by: -Colorectal Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire(QLQ-CR38):organized into 2 areas: 1.Functioning area,which includes the body image and sexual functioning scales and the items on enjoying sex and worrying about the future.2.Symptom area with scales for problems with urination,gastrointestinal symptoms,chemotherapy side effects,problems with defecation,problems with the stoma,sexual problems in men and women,and the weight loss item. All scores ranged 1 to 4, and then are lineal transformation is done (0 to 100). In the functioning area,a higher score indicates a better quality of life,while in the symptom area, a higher score indicates a worse quality | 1st month |
| Quality of life (QoL) - QLQ-CR38 6th month | Assessed by: -Colorectal Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire(QLQ-CR38):organized into 2 areas: 1.Functioning area,which includes the body image and sexual functioning scales and the items on enjoying sex and worrying about the future.2.Symptom area with scales for problems with urination,gastrointestinal symptoms,chemotherapy side effects,problems with defecation,problems with the stoma,sexual problems in men and women,and the weight loss item. All scores ranged 1 to 4, and then are lineal transformation is done (0 to 100). In the functioning area,a higher score indicates a better quality of life,while in the symptom area, a higher score indicates a worse quality | 6th month post-surgery |
| Quality of life (QoL) - QLQ-CR38 12th month | Assessed by: -Colorectal Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire(QLQ-CR38):organized into 2 areas: 1.Functioning area,which includes the body image and sexual functioning scales and the items on enjoying sex and worrying about the future.2.Symptom area with scales for problems with urination,gastrointestinal symptoms,chemotherapy side effects,problems with defecation,problems with the stoma,sexual problems in men and women,and the weight loss item. All scores ranged 1 to 4, and then are lineal transformation is done (0 to 100). In the functioning area,a higher score indicates a better quality of life,while in the symptom area, a higher score indicates a worse quality | 12th month post-surgery |
| Patient global impression of improvement (PGI-I) | Assessed by PGI-I questionnaire. The Patient Global Improvement Visual Analogue Scale (PGI-I) will be used to allow patients to comparatively assess their degree of global improvement after undergoing posterior tibial nerve stimulation therapy. The scale in question has only one question that asks the patient to classify the degree of symptom relief obtained with the treatment according to the 7-point Likert scale. The higher the score, the better the perception of quality of life. | 1 year |
methylcellulose, loperamide, ... (yes or no, if yes should specify)
| At the enrollment |
| Tumor characteristics | Date of diagnosis (exact day), clinical TNM stage (TNM), tumour height from the anal verge by colonoscopy (cm) and proctoscopy (cm) magnetic resonance imaging findings (TNM, cm to anal verge), neadjuvant treatment (yes or no, which type), CEA values (ng/mL), neutrophil and lymphocyte values pre and post-chemotherapy (absolut value x10e9) | At the enrollment |
| Surgical details | Date of surgery, surgical approach (laparoscopic (LAP), robotic (ROB), LAP + transanal (TaTME), ROB + TaTME), transanal extraction of the specimen (yes or no), intraoperative complications (specify), type of anastomosis (mechanic, manual), height of anastomosis (cm), protective ileostomy (yes or no) | At the enrollment |
| Follow-up | Days of hospital stay (days), days until intake (days), postoperative complications (yes or no, if yes specify and complete Clavien-Dindo clasification), treatment of postoperative complication (need of new surgery, yes or no, if yes specify surgical procedure), readmission (yes or no, specify why) | From the surgical day (day 1) to the end of the study (day 360) |
| Esphinteric funcionality | Rectal examination with basal tone and transperineal ultrasound (normal, insufficient expulsive maneuver, sphincter defect, anism, rectal hypersensitivity, rectal hyposensitivity, not performed), Oxford classification of esphinteric muscular strenght (0 to 5, being 5 good function). | At 1st month and 12th month from day 1 (surgery day) |
| Compliance diary | Registration of the sessions done and observations | 1 year |
| Xarxa Assistencial Universitària de Manresa, Althaia | Recruiting | Manresa | Barcelona | 08243 | Spain |
|
| View source |
| Muratore A, Mellano A, Marsanic P, De Simone M. Transanal total mesorectal excision (taTME) for cancer located in the lower rectum: Short- and mid-term results. European Journal of Surgical Oncology. 2015; 41(4): 478-83. | View source |
| Color II Study Group, Buunen M, Bonjer HJ, Hop WCJ, Haglind E, Kurlberg G, et al. COLOR II. A randomized clinical trial comparing laparoscopic and open surgery for rectal cancer. Danish Medical Bulletin. 2009; 56(2): 89-91. | View source |
| Van der Pas MH, Haglind E, Cuesta MA, Fürst A, Lacy AM, Hop WC, et al. Laparoscopic versus open surgery for rectal cancer (COLOR II): short-term outcomes of a randomised, phase 3 trial. Lancet Oncology. 2013; 14(3): 210-8. | View source |
| Sanchon L., Bardají M., Labró M., Curto J., Soto C., Puig A., et al. Oncological monitoring after transanal total mesorectal excision (TaTME) for rectal neoplàsia. Techniques in Coloproctology. 2023: 27(9):739-746. | View source |
| Grass J. K., Chen C-C., Melling N., Lingala B., Kemper M., Scognamiglio P., et al. Robotic rectal resection preserves anorectal function: systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Med Robot. 2021; 17(6):e2329. | View source |
| Emmertsen KJ, Laurberg S. Low anterior resection syndrome score: development and validation of a symptom-based scoring system for bowel dysfunction after low anterior resection for rectal cancer. Annals of Surgery. 2012; 255(5): 922-8. | View source |
| Sörensson M, Asplund D, Matthiessen P, Rosenberg J, Hallgren T, Rosander C, et al. Self-reported sexual dysfunction in patients with rectal cancer. Color Disease. 2020; 22(5): 500-12. | View source |
| Carrillo A, Enríquez-Navascués JM, Rodríguez A, Placer C, Múgica JA, Saralegui Y, et al. Incidencia y caracterización del síndrome de resección anterior de recto mediante la utilización de la escala LARS (low anterior resection score). Cirugía Españo | View source |
| Kauff DW, Roth YDS, Bettzieche RS, Kneist W. Fecal incontinence after total mesorectal excision for rectal cancer-impact of potential risk factors and pelvic intraoperative neuromonitoring. World Journal of Surgical Oncology. 2020; 18(1). | View source |
| Zhang, L., Hu C., Zhao J., Wu C., Zhang Z., Li R., et al. The effect of robotic surgery on low anterior resection syndrome in patients with lower rectal cancer: a propensity score-matched analysis. Surgical Endoscopy 2024; 38(4): 1912-1921. | View source |
| Vidal C., Romero G., Jané C., Vidal L., Arnau A., Rosal A., et al. Intervención no farmacològica para mejorar la calidad de vida de los pacientes intervenidos de resección anterior de recto. Revista Sociedad Española de Enfermería en Estomaterapia. 2 | View source |
| Rosen H., Sebesta C.G., Sebesta C. Cancers (Basel). 2023; 15(3): 778 | View source |
| Nguyen TH, Chokshi R V. Low Anterior Resection Syndrome. Current Gastroenterology Reports. Springer; 2020; 22(10): 48. | View source |
| Ciriza de los Ríos C, Ruiz de León A, García Durán F, Tomás Moros E, Carneros Martín JA, Muñoz Yagüe T, et al. Calidad de vida en pacientes con incontinencia fecal y su relación con la gravedad de la misma.Gastroenterología Hepatología. 2010; 33(9):621-8 | View source |
| Efisioterapia. T.E.N.S. Estimulación nerviosa transcutánea. eFisioterapia.net. 2007. | View source |
| Medicina del Dolor. Hospital VITHAS Valencia. | View source |
| Feb 16, 2026 |
| Prot_SAP_000.pdf |
| ICF | No | No | Yes | Informed Consent Form | Jun 29, 2025 | Feb 16, 2026 | ICF_001.pdf |
| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D000094123 | Low Anterior Resection Syndrome |
| D012004 | Rectal Neoplasms |
| D005242 | Fecal Incontinence |
| D000097910 | Ejaculatory Dysfunction |
| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D003108 | Colonic Diseases |
| D007410 | Intestinal Diseases |
| D005767 | Gastrointestinal Diseases |
| D004066 | Digestive System Diseases |
| D012002 | Rectal Diseases |
| D011183 | Postoperative Complications |
| D010335 | Pathologic Processes |
| D013568 | Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms |
| D015179 | Colorectal Neoplasms |
| D007414 | Intestinal Neoplasms |
| D005770 | Gastrointestinal Neoplasms |
| D004067 | Digestive System Neoplasms |
| D009371 | Neoplasms by Site |
| D009369 | Neoplasms |
| D005832 | Genital Diseases, Male |
| D000091662 | Genital Diseases |
| D000091642 | Urogenital Diseases |
| D012735 | Sexual Dysfunction, Physiological |
| D052801 | Male Urogenital Diseases |
Not provided
Not provided
| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D035061 | Control Groups |
| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D015340 | Epidemiologic Research Design |
| D004812 | Epidemiologic Methods |
| D008919 | Investigative Techniques |
| D012107 | Research Design |
| D008722 | Methods |
Not provided
Not provided