Central Nervous System Effects
Oxybutynin is associated with anticholinergic central nervous system (CNS)
effects (See ADVERSE REACTIONS). A variety of CNS anticholinergic effects
have been reported, including hallucinations, agitation, confusion and somnolence.
Patients should be monitored for signs of anticholinergic CNS effects, particularly
in the first few months after beginning treatment or increasing the dose. If
a patient experiences anticholinergic CNS effects, dose reduction or drug discontinuation
should be considered.
DITROPAN should be used with caution in patients with preexisting dementia treated with cholinesterase inhibitors due to the risk of aggravation of symptoms.
General
DITROPAN® (oxybutynin chloride) should be used with caution in the frail elderly, in patients with hepatic or renal impairment, and in patients with myasthenia gravis.
DITROPAN may aggravate the symptoms of hyperthyroidism, coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure, cardiac arrhythmias, hiatal hernia, tachycardia, hypertension, myasthenia gravis, and prostatic hypertrophy.
Urinary Retention
DITROPAN should be administered with caution to patients with clinically significant
bladder outflow obstruction because of the risk of urinary retention (see CONTRAINDICATIONS).
Gastrointestinal Disorders
DITROPAN should be administered with caution to patients with gastrointestinal
obstructive disorders because of the risk of gastric retention (see CONTRAINDICATIONS).
Administration of DITROPAN to patients with ulcerative colitis may suppress intestinal motility to the point of producing a paralytic ileus and precipitate or aggravate toxic megacolon, a serious complication of the disease.
DITROPAN, like other anticholinergic drugs, may decrease gastrointestinal motility and should be used with caution in patients with conditions such as ulcerative colitis, and intestinal atony.
DITROPAN should be used with caution in patients who have gastroesophageal reflux and/or who are concurrently taking drugs (such as bisphosphonates) that can cause or exacerbate esophagitis.
Carcinogenesis, Mutagenesis, Impairment of Fertility
A 24-month study in rats at dosages of oxybutynin chloride of 20, 80, and 160 mg/kg/day showed no evidence of carcinogenicity. These doses are approximately 6, 25, and 50 times the maximum human exposure, based on surface area.
Oxybutynin chloride showed no increase of mutagenic activity when tested in
Schizosaccharomyces pompholiciformis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Salmonella
typhimurium test systems.
Reproduction studies using oxybutynin chloride in the hamster, rabbit, rat, and mouse have shown no definite evidence of impaired fertility.
Pregnancy
Category B. Reproduction studies using oxybutynin chloride in the hamster, rabbit, rat, and mouse have shown no definite evidence of impaired fertility or harm to the animal fetus. The safety of DITROPAN administered to women who are or who may become pregnant has not been established. Therefore, DITROPAN should not be given to pregnant women unless, in the judgment of the physician, the probable clinical benefits outweigh the possible hazards.
Nursing Mothers
It is not known whether this drug is excreted in human milk. Because many drugs are excreted in human milk, caution should be exercised when DITROPAN is administered to a nursing woman.
Pediatric Use
The safety and efficacy of DITROPAN administration have been demonstrated for
pediatric patients 5 years of age and older (see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION).
The safety and efficacy of DITROPAN Tablets were studied in 30 children in a 24-week, open-label trial. Patients were aged 5-15 years, all had symptoms of detrusor overactivity in association with a neurological condition (e.g., spina bifida), all used clean intermittent catheterization, and all were current users of oxybutynin chloride. Study results demonstrated that the administration of DITROPAN was associated with improvement in clinical and urodynamic parameters.
At total daily doses ranging from 5 mg to 15 mg, treatment with DITROPAN Tablets
was associated with an increase from baseline in mean urine volume per catheterization
from 122 mL to 145 mL, an increase from baseline in mean urine volume after
morning awakening from 148 mL to 168 mL, and an increase from baseline in the
mean percentage of catheterizations without a leaking episode from 43% to 61%.
Urodynamic results in these patients were consistent with the clinical results.
Treatment with DITROPAN Tablets was associated with an increase from baseline
in maximum cystometric capacity from 230 mL to 279 mL, a decrease from baseline
in mean detrusor pressure at maximum cystometric capacity from 36 cm H20
to 33 cm H20, and a reduction in the percentage of patients demonstrating
uninhibited detrusor contractions (of at least 15 cm H20) from 39%
to 20%.
As there is insufficient clinical data for pediatric populations under age 5, DITROPAN is not recommended for this age group.
Geriatric Use
Clinical studies of DITROPAN did not include sufficient numbers of subjects
age 65 and over to determine whether they respond differently from younger patients.
Other reported clinical experience has not identified differences in responses
between healthy elderly and younger patients; however, a lower initial starting
dose of 2.5 mg given 2 or 3 times a day has been recommended for the frail elderly
due to a prolongation of the elimination half-life from 2-3 hours to 5 hours.2,
3, 4 In general, dose selection for an elderly patient should be cautious,
usually starting at the low end of the dosing range, reflecting the greater
frequency of decreased hepatic, renal, or cardiac function, and of concomitant
disease or other drug therapy.
REFERENCES
1. Yong C et al. Effect of Food on the Pharmacokinetics of Oxybutynin in normal
subjects. Pharm Res. 1991; 8 (Suppl.): S-320.
2. Hughes KM et al. Measurement of oxybutynin and its N-desethyl metabolite
in plasma, and its application to pharmacokinetic studies in young, elderly
and frail elderly volunteers. Xenobiotica. 1992; 22 (7): 859-869.
3. Ouslander J et al. Pharmacokinetics and Clinical Effects of Oxybutynin in
Geriatric Patients. J. Urol. 1988; 140: 47-50.
4. Yarker Y et al. Oxybutynin: A review of its Pharmacodynamic and Pharmacokinetic
Properties, and its Therapeutic Use in Detrusor Instability. Drugs &
Aging. 1995; 6(3): 243-262.
Last updated on RxList: 7/31/2009