Interstitial cystitis: bladder training with intravesical oxybutynin

Purpose: We assess the efficacy of intravesical administration of oxybutynin chloride in patients with interstitial cystitis.

Materials and methods: The study included 36 women with a mean age of 45 years with a diagnosis of interstitial cystitis. Patients were treated with gradual intravesical instillation of saline oxybutynin solution (oxybutynin group) or gradual filling of simple saline (control group). Evaluation parameters consisted of symptom problem index, voids per day, volume per void, functional bladder capacity, volume at first sensation, cystometric bladder capacity and cystometric volume at first sensation.

Results: Statistically significant improvement of all evaluated parameters was found in both groups. When comparing the outcomes statistically significant improvement of parameters favored the oxybutynin group.

Conclusions: Bladder training alone produces a satisfactory result by gradually expanding the bladder, and an additional statistically significant improvement is evident with intravesical oxybutynin.