Correlation between Clinical and Urodynamic Improvement in Patients with Overactive Bladder Syndrome on Anticholinergic Drugs

Background: The International Continence Society (ICS) defined overactive bladder syndrome (OAB) as urinary urgency with or without urge incontinence, often accompanied by frequency and nocturia in absence of infection. Urinary urgency is the complaint of a sudden compelling desire to void which is difficult to defer with patients often suffering from anxiety due to fear of leakage. Urge urinary incontinence is defined as involuntary leakage of urine, accompanied or immediately preceded by urgency. Overactive bladder syndrome is a symptomatic diagnosis. On the other hand, detrusor overactivity (DO) is a urodynamic finding, characterized by involuntary detrusor contractions during the filling phase, which may be spontaneous or provoked. These terms aren't interchangeable, as overactive bladder syndrome patients may not have detrusor activity on urodynamic testing.
Aim of the Work: to determine the relation between clinical improvement and urodynamic based improvement in patients with overactive bladder syndrome receiving anticholinergic drugs.
Patients and Methods: this study included thirty-eight patients, who presented to the Outpatient Urology Clinic at Ahmed Maher Teaching Hospital with symptoms of OAB syndrome. This study design was prospective. Patients clinical histories were taken, they were examined thoroughly, and completed an IPSS questionnaire. This was followed by a urinalysis, free uroflowmetry and a pelvi-abdominal ultrasound.
Results: this study included thirty-eight patients who were divided into two groups. Group A included twenty-one patients, fifteen females and six males with mean age of 48.2 years old (21-60), who did not have detrusor overactivity in the first urodynamic study. On the other hand, group B included seventeen patients, ten females and seven males with mean age of 43.7 years old (18-58), who had detrusor overactivity in the initial urodynamic study. Patients in both groups received Solifenacin 10 mg once daily for twelve weeks before completing another IPSS questionnaire and undergoing a follow up urodynamic study.
Conclusion: in this study, we concluded that there was strong correlation between urodynamic and clinical improvement in OAB patients after Solifenacin treatment as patients who were improved urodynamicaly reported improvement of their symptoms while those with poor urodynamic response reported that their symptoms were either the same as before treatment or worse. We also concluded that Solifenacin 10 mg once daily led to significant improvement in IPSS results of OAB patients with significant increase in volume to first desire and maximum cystometric capacity.