Overactive Bladder Medications
For many years, only two
overactive bladder medicines were approved to treat overactive bladder:
Since then, the FDA approved several more drugs for overactive bladder:
All of these overactive bladder medications come in pill form, and oxybutynin is also available as a skin patch.
All these drugs work in essentially the same way: to decrease urgency, frequency, and urge incontinence. They block the nerve impulses to the bladder that cause it to contract and leak. Side effects of the drugs can include:
Electrical Stimulation Devices to Treat Overactive Bladder
Some men and women with overactive bladder benefit from electrical stimulation devices, which help strengthen the pelvic floor muscles. Mild, painless electrical pulses are sent to these muscles through electrodes, which are temporarily placed in the rectum or vagina.