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Oxytrol For Women
Oxytrol For Women is available without a prescription and is designed to treat an overactive bladder in women. The medicine comes as a patch that is applied to the skin and worn for four days. It works by helping to control the bladder muscles. Although most people tolerate this medicine well, side effects are possible and may include dry mouth, constipation, and itching at the application site.
Oxytrol® For Women (OTC oxybutynin patch) is a nonprescription medication used to treat an overactive bladder. It is currently the only over-the-counter (OTC) bladder control medication available in the United States.
Oxytrol For Women is the same strength as the prescription-only version. However, unlike the prescription version (which is approved for use in both men and women), the over-the-counter version is approved only for women, as the name suggests. This is because the safety and effectiveness of self-treatment, without a prescription, was studied only in women.
Oxytrol For Women is approved to help treat the following problems due to an overactive bladder:
- Sudden urges to urinate (known as urinary urgency)
- Frequent urination (known as urinary frequency)
- Leaking accidents (known as urinary incontinence or urge incontinence).
(Click Oxytrol For Women Uses for more information on this topic, including possible off-label uses.)
Oxytrol For Women is made by MSD Consumer Care, Inc., a division of Merck & Co, Inc.
Oxytrol For Women belongs to a group of drugs known as antimuscarinic or anticholinergic medications. It works by blocking specific receptors, called muscarinic receptors, in the bladder, helping to relax the bladder muscles.
Because an overactive bladder is often due to muscle contractions that are too frequent and uncontrollable, Oxytrol For Women can help relieve many symptoms of bladder problems.
Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD