REVIEW - Drug-induced urinary incontinence

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Drugs Aging. 2008;25(7):541-9.

Drug-induced urinary incontinence.

Tsakiris P, Oelke M, Michel MC.

Department of Urology, Academic Medical Center, University of

Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Abstract

Physiological urinary continence depends on many factors that are

potentially vulnerable to adverse drug effects, which may lead to

incontinence. In principle, drugs could cause incontinence by lowering

bladder outlet resistance and/or by increasing intravesical pressure,

which disrupts the normal pressure relationship between the bladder

and urethra and leads to urinary leakage; other possibilities include

disturbances of central nervous control of voiding or an

overproduction of urine. While many drug groups could theoretically

induce urinary incontinence based upon pathophysiological

considerations, evidence demonstrating a cause-effect relationship

between drug usage and incontinence is sparse. Drug classes in which

induction of incontinence has been proposed include

alpha(1)-adrenoceptor antagonists, antipsychotics, benzodiazepines,

antidepressants and hormone replacement therapy in postmenopausal

women. However, other drug classes are not innocent in terms of

causing urinary incontinence and physicians are well advised to

closely monitor patients for the occurrence of incontinence after new

prescriptions and/or major dosage changes.

PMID: 18582143

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18582143

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