Bladder sensory desensitization decreases urinary urgency (original) (raw)

Recent advances in basic science for overactive bladder

Current Opinion in Urology, 2005

Purpose of review Detrusor overactivity is a relatively common yet embarrassing symptom complex with significant impact on quality of life. The mainstay of current pharmacological treatment involves the use of muscarinic receptor antagonists, but their therapeutic effectiveness is limited by a combination of limited efficacy and troublesome side effects and has recently been challenged by Herbison et al. Recognition of the limitations of existing therapy has started the search for pharmacotherapeutic agents acting on alternative pathways underlying detrusor overactivity with the intention of improving storage symptoms of urgency, frequency and urge incontinence. Recent findings Recent research has suggested that several transmitters may modulate bladder storage. However, no agents currently available, acting via mechanisms other than muscarinic receptors have entered clinical practice so far. It is clear that far from being a passive container for urine, the urothelium is a crucial area within the bladder wall and its functions are complex and only now beginning to be appreciated. The release of several neurotransmitters from urothelium in response to distension and its action on receptors on sensory neurons is being increasingly recognized. The role for this afferent stimulation on the micturition reflex is gradually gaining importance in the pathophysiology of detrusor overactivity. Summary In this article, the recent developments in basic science related to the pathogenesis and pharmacological basis for future drug targets for effective management of overactive bladder are discussed.

Defining overactive bladder as hypersensitivity

Neurourology and Urodynamics, 2007

Overactive bladder (OAB), according to the International Continence Society (ICS) definition, is a symptom syndrome, with urgency as the cornerstone symptom. However, the word 'urgency' and its definition continue to be the subject of much debate and confusion. It is generally difficult for patients to differentiate urgency from normal urge, particularly when the desire to void is strong. To investigate the micturition behavior associated with OAB, we conducted a Patient Trust Study in 21 intelligent (i.e., to be 'trusted') female patients who could clearly and accurately discriminate between urgency and urge. The results showed that in 43% of patients seeking medical care, urgency episodes occurred less than once/day, and some patients had days without urgency. Our patients deferred voiding until bladder sensation was relatively strong, suggesting that coping was not common among these patients. Four of the 21 patients studied experienced spontaneous resolution of several urgency episodes. At volumes exceeding 40% of the maximum bladder volume (MBV), urgency episodes occurred frequently and independently of the bladder volume, indicating that 40% of the MBV may be a threshold of bladder volume to induce urgency. A linear relationship was observed between bladder volume and increasing bladder sensation. However, compared with normal subjects, urge sensation increased markedly at any given bladder volume among patients with OAB in our study. This hypersensitivity was observed in our patients regardless of urgency episodes. We therefore hypothesized that OAB may be more accurately defined as a hypersensitivity disorder rather than a syndrome characterized by urgency. Neurourol. Urodynam.

Evaluating Patients' Symptoms of Overactive Bladder by Questionnaire: The Role of Urgency in Urinary Frequency

Urology

To explain what role urinary urgency has on urinary frequency in patients with overactive bladder (OAB). We prospectively enrolled 102 patients with OAB over a 6-week period. Patients were assessed with the OAB-q and a pilot questionnaire to identify which urinary symptoms were most bothersome and what underlying cause subjects attributed urinary frequency to. Associations between epidemiologic characteristics, OAB-q scores, and subject responses to the pilot questionnaire, were examined for statistical significance with the Pearson chi square test. The study population comprised 85% women and 15% men, with mean age 67.4 years and mean OAB-q score 54. Subjects reported their most bothersome symptom was: frequency 24.5%, urgency or urgency incontinence 48.0%, nocturia 27.5%. Of the patients most bothered by frequency, 64% identified the International Continence Society definition of urgency or "fear of leakage" as the underlying reason for their frequency. Overall, 82.4% an...

The challenge of overactive bladder therapy: alternative to antimuscarinic agents

International braz j urol, 2006

Contemporary, the management of overactive bladder (OAB), a medical condition characterized by urgency, with or without urge urinary incontinence, frequency and nocturia, in absence of genitourinary pathologies or metabolic factors that could explain these symptoms, is complex, and a wide range of conservative treatments has been offered, including bladder training, biofeedback, behavioral changes, oral or intravesical anticholinergic agents, S3 sacral neuromodulation and peripheral electrical stimulation. Clinical efficacy of these treatments remains an open issue and several experimental and clinical studies were carried out in the last years improving the results of medical treatment. Here we review the pathophysiology of micturition reflex, the current therapies for OAB and the rationale for alternative treatments. Furthermore we critically address the potential use of medications targeting the central nervous system (CNS) and the primary sensory nerves of the bladder wall, we review the use of agonists of nociceptin/orphanin protein (NOP) receptor and finally we report the results obtained by intradetrusor injection of botulinum toxin.

Physical Agent-Based Treatments for Overactive Bladder: A Review

Journal of Clinical Medicine

Almost one-fifth of the people in the world experience a decrease in quality of life due to overactive bladder (OAB) syndrome. The main bothersome symptoms are urgency accompanied by urinary frequency and nocturia. This chronic, disabling condition is first managed by reducing fluid intake and pelvic floor muscle training, supplemented with antimuscarinic drugs, if necessary. However, refractory cases often still occur. In more severe cases, invasive surgical interventions can be considered; yet, the success rate is still inconsistent, and there is a high complication rate. This condition is frustrating for patients and challenging for the medical staff involved. Although its pathophysiology has not been fully elucidated, peripheral autonomic somatic and sensory afferent receptors are considered to be involved in this condition. Hence, currently, physical agent-based treatments such as neuromodulation have taken a significant place in the third-line therapy of OAB. The efficacy and ...