Clozapine and urinary incontinence.
Urinary incontinence may occur in patients with severe mental illness. Psychosis and neuroleptic medication have both been implicated, but there has been a lack of systematic evaluation of the precise relationship between these phenomena. Incontinence has been recognized as a complication of clozapine treatment and we examined this in 16 consecutively treated patients. Thirteen were established on therapeutic doses, one of whom was excluded from further study due to pre-existing incontinence. Retrospective assessment revealed that nocturnal incontinence was experienced by five of the remaining 12 patients, occurring in the first 3 months of treatment and resolving spontaneously in all cases. Incontinence was documented in the case notes in only one of the five cases and there was a tendency for affected patients to be embarrassed and reluctant to report it to staff. Specific enquiry may be necessary to elicit this phenomenon and incontinence should be considered as a possible factor in poor compliance with clozapine.
Warner
J P
JP
Academic Department of Psychiatry, Royal Free Hospital, London, UK.
Harvey
C A
CA
Barnes
T R
TR
D000328:Adult; D003024:Clozapine / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004775:Enuresis / Q000139:chemically induced*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000523:psychology; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014549:Urinary Incontinence / Q000139:chemically induced*
D003024:Clozapine