Local Anesthetic Treatments for Overactive Bladder

Existing first-line treatments for overactive bladder are limited by requirements for
chronic dosing and associated systemic side effects. Small case series suggest that bladder
instillation of lidocaine may be effective in downregulating the afferent neuronal activity
of a sensitized bladder, leading to elevation of the urge sensory threshold and decreasing
detrusor activity. However, neither the effectiveness over placebo nor the durability of
the response has been previously investigated.

Comparison(s): We propose a randomized, prospective double-blinded controlled trial to
determine if a three-week trial of intravesical alkalized lidocaine instillation decreases
symptoms of overactive bladder more than instillation of normal saline using a validated
outcome instrument, the OAB-q.