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Published October 28, 2015
Botox is being used increasingly in the medical community – for migraines, multiple sclerosis and severe sweating.
But a new study by Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health, found Botox can successfully treat some women with urinary urgency incontinence, Medical News Today reported. The Botox is two times more effective than medicine in completely eliminating symptoms, according to the study.
The study is similar to last year’s study, which said Botox had been approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat urinary incontinence in patients who have neurological conditions.
Urinary incontenience happens when urine leaks involuntarily. Urgency incontinence is accompanied by an intense, sudden need to use the bathroom, according to Medical News Today
Anticholinergics are usually used to treat the bladder muscle but unpleasant side effects such as constipation, dry mouth and dry eyes can occur.
Approximately 15 percent of women have urinary incontinence (and women are two times more likely to have the condition than men).
“Prior to this study, we reserved onabotulinum toxin-A for women who did not respond to traditional oral medication,” wrote Dr. Linda Brubaker, co-author of the study, which was published in The New England Journal of Medicine. “However, this research supports the use of either of these approaches as appropriate first-line treatment in women.”
Researchers looked at 241 women who had urinary urgency incontinence; some were given oral medications in addition to a saline shot, while others were given a shot of Botox with a placebo pill to take every day.
Patients who were given the Botox noticed their urinary occurrences reduced by at least 3 percent, the same as oral medications.
Twenty-seven percent of the women said their symptoms disappeared completely – and both groups said they were happier.
Some women who took the Botox reported urinary tract infections, according to the study.
Click here for more from Medical News Today.
https://www.foxnews.com/health/study-shows-botox-can-treat-overactive-bladder