Selecting medications for the treatment of urinary incontinence.
In response to the growing population of older patients with incontinence, pharmaceutical companies are developing new drugs to treat the condition. Before prescribing medications for incontinence, however, physicians should determine the nature and cause of the patient's incontinence. The evaluation should rule out reversible conditions, conditions requiring special evaluation, and overflow bladder. The best treatment for urge incontinence is behavior therapy in the form of pelvic floor muscle exercises. Medications, used as an adjunct to behavior therapy, can provide additional benefit. Many therapies are available for patients with stress incontinence, including pelvic floor muscle exercise, surgery, intravaginal support devices, pessaries, peri-urethral injections, magnetic chairs, and intraurethral inserts. No medication has been approved for the treatment of stress incontinence, although medications are under development.
Weiss
Barry D
BD
Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson, Arizona 85719, USA. bdweiss@u.arizona.edu
D018759:Adrenergic Uptake Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000316:Adrenergic alpha-Agonists / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000465:Algorithms; D001521:Behavior Therapy / Q000379:methods; D018680:Cholinergic Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D004599:Electric Stimulation Therapy; D004967:Estrogens / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D014549:Urinary Incontinence / Q000628:therapy*
D018759:Adrenergic Uptake Inhibitors; D000316:Adrenergic alpha-Agonists; D018680:Cholinergic Antagonists; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D004967:Estrogens