King's College Hospital, Subspecialty trainee in Urogynaecology, Suite 8 Golden Jubilee Wing, Denmark Hill London SE5 9 RS, UK.
Overactive bladder syndrome is a common condition that adversely affects the quality of life. It is mainly treated with a combination of bladder retraining and antimuscarinics. In a quest to reduce the side effect profile of these drugs, whilst improving their efficacy, more bladder-selective antimuscarinics were developed. One of the more recent of these antimuscarinics which has come to the market is fesoterodine. This review examines the evidence of the safety and efficacy of this drug.
A literature search performed identified two main multi-center trials which highlight the safety, efficacy and tolerability of fesoterodine. These together with the pharmacologic properties of the drug are discussed at length throughout the review. An expert opinion is then formulated based on the current evidence available and on comparison with other antimuscarinics.
It is concluded that fesoterodine has the added advantage of flexible dosing over some other antimuscarinics. It does, however, have a similar tolerability and side effect profile to other antimuscarinics and is, therefore, unlikely to revolutionize the treatment of the overactive bladder.
Written by:
Vella M, Cardozo L. Are you the author?
Reference: Expert Opin Drug Saf. 2011 Jun 4. Epub ahead of print.
doi: 10.1517/14740338.2011.591377
PubMed Abstract
PMID: 21639817
UroToday.com Overactive Bladder (OAB) Section
