VA Augusta leads the way in Georgia with new urology therapy transforming Veterans’ lives
By Megan Kon, Public Affairs Specialist, VA Southeast Network
For many Veterans living with overactive bladder and urge urinary incontinence, daily life can feel like a cycle of planning, anxiety, and constant interruption. At VA Augusta Health Care System, a breakthrough is rewriting that story and giving Veterans back the freedom they thought they’d lost.
This winter, VA Augusta became the first hospital in Georgia – and the second VA Medical Center in the nation – to offer a new non‑invasive therapy using Medtronic’s Altaviva implant, a device that reshapes how the brain and bladder communicate. For Veterans receiving it, the change isn’t subtle. It’s life‑altering.
'I’m not waking up in the middle of the night’
For Bryant Murray, a 54‑year‑old Army Veteran who served four tours in Iraq, the therapy has meant reclaiming some of the simplest — yet most meaningful — parts of daily life.
“It is a good benefit,” Murray said. “I’m not getting excess leakage. I don’t have to wait. My flow is continuous. I’m not waking up in the middle of the night two to three times just to go.”
After battling overactive bladder for more than a year and trying multiple medications, Murray said it was the first time he’d felt in control again.
“It was aggravating,” he recalled. “I would go to the bathroom but would have to sit there and wait 10 to 15 minutes sometimes to get it all out. The pressure would build up. It was painful.”
With the implant, that chapter is closing. Today, he describes life with a freedom he had almost forgotten, especially while driving.
“It’s a huge relief not having to worry, anymore,” he said.
Small implant, big impact
The Altaviva device, cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2024, is placed near the ankle in a quick outpatient procedure using only local anesthesia. It sends gentle pulses to the tibial nerve, restoring the connection between brain and bladder, without requiring a spinal implant or trial phase.
Dr. Thomas Dykes, chief of urology at VA Augusta, performed the state’s first procedure.
“This therapy gives Veterans a less invasive alternative when medications or lifestyle changes aren’t enough,” Dykes said. “Being the first VA in the state to offer it means more Veterans can get the care they deserve without traveling long distances.”
For Murray, the procedure was surprisingly simple.
“It was nice and quick in the clinic. They numbed the area, made the incision, put the device in and programmed it,” he said. His device is scheduled to activate three times a week at 9 p.m.
‘Now I can drive two hours without stopping’
While Murray’s story is one of reclaimed rest and confidence, Navy Veteran Gayla Kunis describes something equally emotional: dignity restored.
A trailblazer as the first woman engineer in her department aboard the USS Canopus, Kunis spent nearly 20 years learning to manage, hide, and endure her symptoms. It wasn’t easy.
“I have been known to pull over on the side of the road and go right there,” Kunis admitted. “I would bring an accident bag — underwear, pads, toilet paper, hand sanitizer. Six pads a day, sometimes more.”
Her mother, a retired nurse practitioner, saw a magazine article that finally connected the dots. Kunis became one of the first Veterans at VA Augusta to receive the new therapy, and the transformation, she said, is profound.
“Now I can drive all the way to my mother’s house in Anderson, South Carolina, about two hours, and not even need to stop.”
Around her home, she speaks with a mixture of disbelief and pride.
“In the house, I never have to wear a pad,” she said. “If I feel like I have to go, I can finish cooking, finish what I’m doing, then walk — not run — to the bathroom.”
Meeting a critical need for Veterans
In the last two years, nearly 800 Veterans at VA Augusta have needed help managing urinary incontinence, and more than 600 have been treated for overactive bladders. Nationally, the conditions affect up to 33 million Americans.
For many, symptoms can be isolating, even debilitating. Leaders at VA Augusta see the new therapy not only as a medical advancement, but as a way to restore confidence, connection, and quality of life. The Altaviva implant joins a growing portfolio of specialized urologic services offered at VA Augusta, part of its commitment to meeting Veterans where they are with treatments that work for their lives.
Changing more than symptoms
For Kunis, the biggest sign of change didn’t come during a drive, it came at Christmas.
“I hosted Christmas Day dinner for the whole family last year,” she said. “In the past I would have been super stressed, but I wasn’t at all. I delegated, I stayed calm, and it went smoothly.”
That night, her mother told her it was the perfect Christmas.
“It meant everything,” Kunis said. “I waited years to hear that.”
Veterans enrolled in primary care at VA Augusta who are interested in the procedure simply need to request a urology referral from their VA provider. For more details on the Medtronic device visit https://www.medtronic.com/en-us/patients/conditions-treatments/urinary/altaviva-system.html.