Abnormalities of the innervation of the urethral striated sphincter musculature in incontinence.

Perineal nerve and transcutaneous spinal cord stimulation have been used to study 17 patients with idiopathic neurogenic faecal incontinence, 12 of whom also had urinary incontinence. Significant increases in spinal, perineal and pudendal nerve motor latencies were demonstrated in all 17 patients. These results suggest that there is damage to the nerves innervating both the urethral and perianal sphincter musculature in these patients, including those with isolated faecal incontinence. There was evidence of both a distal (perineal nerve) and a proximal (sacral root) component to the damage to the nerve supply of the urethral striated sphincter muscle in half of the patients.