CHICAGO — Oxybutynin chloride topical gel provides a novel treatment option for patients with overactive bladder, according to the findings of a randomized, multicenter phase III study.
In the trial, 24% of 246 patients, younger than age 65 years, with overactive bladder who applied 1 g of oxybutynin gel once daily achieved complete urinary continence at 12 weeks, compared with 17% of 260 age-matched placebo-treated patients.
Among those participants who were aged 65 years or older, 34% of 143 patients using oxybutynin were continent at 12 weeks compared with 18% of 140 patients using placebo, Dr. Norman Zinner reported in a poster at the annual meeting of the American Geriatrics Society.
Oxybutynin (Gelnique) 10% gel was approved for treating overactive bladder.
Most of the study participants were white women, with a mean duration of incontinence of about 7.5 years. In patients younger than 65 years, oxybutynin gel achieved a significantly greater reduction than placebo in average number of daily incontinence episodes (−3.2 vs. −2.6 per day), said Dr. Zinner, a urologist with Western Clinical Research Inc. in Torrance, Calif. In patients 65 years and older, oxybutynin gel resulted in a greater reduction than placebo in daily incontinence episodes (−2.6 vs. −2.2), but the difference between groups was not significant.
Possible side effects from oxybutynin gel include dry mouth and dizziness.
Dr. Zinner is on the speakers and advisory boards for Watson Laboratories, which manufacturers oxybutynin gel. His colleagues are Watson employees.