Overactive bladder (OAB) is a common condition that affects millions of people. It includes symptoms such as urinary urgency, frequency, leakage and wetting accidents. Botox for Overactive Bladder is an FDA-approved medication that is injected directly into the bladder muscle to treat OAB. It has been shown to reduce these symptoms for months at a time.
How Does Botox Work?
Botox is a safe, FDA-approved product that temporarily blocks nerve signals from reaching the muscles to prevent them from contracting. It is used to treat a wide variety of medical conditions, including overactive bladder and neuropathic pain.
It is also used to improve the appearance of wrinkles on the face and neck. When injected into the muscle, it stops acetylcholine release at the neuromuscular junction, which relaxes the underlying muscle, leading to facial aesthetic improvement.
The protein that makes up Botox is made by a bacteria called Clostridium botulinum. These bacteria are found naturally in soil, wetlands and the gastrointestinal tracts of some animals. However, when the population of these bacteria grows and mutates, they can produce the very dangerous neurotoxin known as botulism.
During the procedure, your doctor uses a lighted scope to inject the drug into the walls of your bladder. This is done through a small tube, similar to a syringe, and it takes less than 15 minutes.
In most cases, the injection isn’t painful. Your urologist will numb your skin with local anesthetic, like the kind you get when having a cavity filled.
Once the area is numb, the doctor will use a very thin needle to inject the botulinum toxin directly into the detrusor muscle of your bladder. This will stop the contraction of your bladder muscle and reduce urinary urgency, frequency, leakage or wetting accidents.
You can expect results from the treatment to be noticeable after a few days. In the meantime, you may experience a tightness or “heavy” feeling in your treatment areas. This sensation will fade within a few weeks.
Because the effects of this treatment are temporary, you’ll need to receive repeat injections every three months or so. During this time, the toxin will gradually start to break down, and the underlying muscle will begin to return to normal movement.
You’ll need to schedule a follow-up appointment with your urologist to get your next injections. Your urologist will also check to make sure that you don’t have any urine in your bladder when you go to the bathroom. You’ll also need to avoid rubbing or massaging the treated area for 24 hours. This will help to prevent the spread of the toxin to other areas of your body.
How Do You Get Botox Injections?
Botox is a prescription medicine that blocks specific chemical signals from nerves that tell your muscles to contract. It’s injected directly into your bladder muscle, helping to reduce the urge to urinate and leakage in people with overactive bladder.
Overactive bladder is a common condition that affects over 30 million Americans and can lead to urinary urgency, frequency, leakage and wetting accidents. Several treatment options are available, including dietary modifications, behavioral therapy and prescription oral medications.
Some people respond better to dietary and lifestyle changes, while others benefit from oral medication or physical therapy. If you’re not satisfied with these treatments, ask your doctor about the possibility of using a more permanent solution like Botox to help with your bladder problem.
Before receiving a Botox injection, your health care provider may prescribe blood thinners to prevent bruising or bleeding. It’s also important to tell your health care provider if you’ve had any Botox or other types of injections within four months prior to the procedure.
After numbing the lining of your bladder with local anesthesia, a small camera and needle are used to inject Botox into the muscles of the bladder. The procedure is done in the office and is generally painless, although patients might experience a slight burning sensation after the injections.
The benefits of using Botox to treat bladder issues last approximately 6 months, and it’s recommended that you receive another injection about three months after the first one to maintain effectiveness. The treatment is typically well tolerated, but some patients may experience side effects such as a urinary tract infection (UTI) or an increase in post-void residual.
Overactive bladder or OAB is a common and potentially debilitating condition that affects over 30 million Americans. Symptoms include sudden, involuntary contractions of the bladder’s detrusor muscle and urinary urgency, frequency, leakage and/or wetting accidents.
When treated with a medical professional, the symptoms of OAB can be dramatically improved. Most patients notice a significant reduction in their bladder symptoms within a few days of their treatment.
Getting Botox is a safe and effective way to treat the most common symptoms of OAB, including urinary frequency, urgency, leakage and wetting accidents. This type of treatment has been shown to be more effective than many other types of medications, and it has been proven to provide long-lasting results in most patients.
What Are the Side Effects of Botox Injections?
If you have a bladder problem, your doctor may suggest Botox injections to treat the condition. The drug is injected into the bladder muscle to help reduce urinary leakage and other symptoms of overactive bladder (OAB).
Overactive bladder happens when nerves in your bladder send incorrect signals to your brain about the size of your bladder, telling it that you need to urinate immediately or that you have just emptied. This can lead to urinary leakage or even a serious infection.
Medications can help control OAB, but sometimes the medications don’t work well or cause side effects that limit treatment. Botox is injected into the bladder lining to block the inappropriate signals that are sending your brain messages that your bladder is full.
Many people who get Botox for OAB do not experience any side effects from the medication. However, some do experience a few symptoms following the injection. Those symptoms include burning, pain or difficulty urinating. Some patients also experience blood in the urine right after the treatment.
These side effects are typically only temporary. The symptoms of a urinary tract infection or blood in the urine usually go away within a few days after treatment.
A small percentage of patients who receive Botox for OAB may need catheterization to remove the excess fluids in their bladder after the procedure. This may happen anytime during the first 2 weeks after the injection.
If you develop a UTI or experience blood in your urine, tell your doctor immediately. He or she can prescribe antibiotics to help prevent the infection.
Other common side effects of Botox injections for OAB or bladder problems are fatigue, painful or difficult urination, and inability to empty your bladder. These symptoms can go away after a few days, but you may have to have Botox injections repeated at regular intervals to keep the benefits of the treatment.
The side effects of Botox for OAB are not as severe or long-lasting as some other OAB treatments, such as InterStim or percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS). Injections can take several months to start working and need to be repeated as needed, so it is important to schedule appointments regularly.
Will Botox For Overactive Bladder Work for Me?
Most people think of Botox (OnabotulinumtoxinA) as a skin-care product used to reduce wrinkles, but it’s also an FDA-approved treatment for overactive bladder and urinary incontinence. This procedure is commonly performed for women who haven’t found success with other treatments such as medication and exercise.
Injecting Botox into the bladder works by temporarily relaxing or paralyzing bladder muscle cells. It does this by blocking the release of acetylcholine, which helps muscles contract.
The neurotoxin that causes this effect is called Clostridium botulinum, which is naturally found in the soil and wetlands around us. But when a population mutates, it can produce botulism, which is fatal and causes paralysis and death.
To treat overactive bladder, your doctor will inject tiny amounts of Botox directly into the muscles of your bladder in several locations. This is a short, in-office procedure that requires only local anesthesia.
Once injected, the Botox blocks the nerves from sending messages to your bladder muscles to contract, and also stops the signals of sensation from the brain that tell your bladder muscles to urinate. These effects are thought to be effective for reducing urination frequency and urgency, resulting in less leaks, as well as increased confidence in your ability to control your bladder.
While the effects of your first injection may last for several months, repeat treatments are necessary to keep them at their best. It is recommended that you receive repeated injections roughly every six months.
Your doctor will determine how much Botox to inject, based on your specific condition and response to previous treatments. Typically, 100-200 units are injected into the bladder, and your doctor will adjust the dose as needed for your individual needs.
For most people, the effects of Botox injections into your bladder will last for 6-12 months. This is usually enough time for your body to adapt to the medication injected into your bladder. However, if you start to have symptoms like hesitancy or increased urinary retention, your doctor may prescribe additional treatments to reduce this side effect.
If you’re interested in finding out if Botox for your overactive bladder is right for you, contact your doctor for an appointment today. They will be happy to answer any questions you might have about the process, and help you determine if it is the right solution for your particular case.
