Combination therapy with botulinum toxin and bulking agent-An efficient, sustainable, and safe method to treat elderly women with mixed urinary incontinence

Aims: To evaluate the efficacy, sustainability and safety of combined botulinum toxin and polyacrylamide hydrogel (PAHG) therapy to treat urgency and stress components of therapy-refractory mixed urinary incontinence (MUI) in an elderly study population.

Methods: Fifty-five women with therapy-refractory MUI were treated with botulinum toxin and PAHG in one surgical procedure. Urgency urinary incontinence (UUI) and stress urinary incontinence (SUI) outcomes were separately assessed after 4 and 12 months by objective UUI episodes/24 h and cough test, subjective impact of UUI and SUI on quality of life, and subjective International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-Urinary Incontinence Short Form (ICIQ-UI SF). MUI outcome was calculated by combining UUI and SUI outcomes. Complications were monitored throughout the study.

Results: At 4 months, objective cure rates were 73%, 53%, and 42%, and subjective cure rates were 71%, 52%, and 50% for SUI, UUI, and MUI. At 12 months, objective cure rates were 73%, 56%, 50% and subjective cure rates were 78%, 42%, and 40% for SUI, UUI, and MUI. The ICIQ-UI SF score decreased by 9.0 and 8.7 points after 4 and 12 months. All complications were transient and included 22% clean intermittent catheterization immediately after surgery, 33% postvoid residual volumes >100 ml at 14 days, and 13% symptomatic urinary tract infection within the first postoperative month.

Conclusions: The combination of botulinum toxin and PAHG is effective, sustainable and safe to treat therapy-refractory MUI, even in an elderly and frail study population. Patients benefit from the short surgical procedure without the need for general anaesthesia or discontinuation of anticoagulation.