Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Research Highlight
  • Published:

Motility

Optimizing sacral nerve stimulation to relieve chronic constipation

Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology volume 23, page 3 (2026)Cite this article

Subjects

A specific pattern of sacral nerve stimulation (burst patterns) effectively restored gut motility in rat models of constipation, according to new research published in Science Translational Medicine.

Using a mix of computational modelling alongside ex vivo and in vivo preclinical animal models, the researchers sought to optimize the electrical stimulation pattern that could restore colonic motility and better understand the mechanisms of the motor patterns evoked by this stimulation. Compared with sham stimulation and the continuous pattern of stimulation that is normally used in the clinic, burst-patterned sacral nerve stimulation markedly increased faecal output and relieved constipation in a loperamide-induced constipation model in rats. Systematic assessments of interburst intervals as well as stimulation frequency and duration revealed the minimum effective parameters to maximize anorectal contractions.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on SpringerLink
  • Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

Original article

  • Barth, B. B. & Grill, W. M. Burst-patterned stimulation restores colonic motility in preclinical models. Sci. Transl Med. 17, eadu4615 (2025)

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology http://www.nature.com/nrgastro/

    Katrina Ray

Authors
  1. Katrina Ray
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Katrina Ray.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Ray, K. Optimizing sacral nerve stimulation to relieve chronic constipation. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol 23, 3 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41575-025-01158-5

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Version of record:

  • Issue date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41575-025-01158-5

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing