The role of botulinum toxin in the management of nonneurogenic overactive bladder in children: Highlights for clinical practice. A systematic review

Abstract

Overactive bladder (OAB) is the most common voiding dysfunction in children; however, nonneurogenic or idiopathic OAB remains poorly studied. First-line treatment includes conservative measures; however, as many patients are refractory, have adverse effects, or are contraindicated for anticholinergics, new options must be explored. This review covers the use of intravesical botulinum toxin (BoNT) for idiopathic OAB treatment in children, emphasizing its efficacy, safety, differences between toxins, doses, and injection techniques. Clinical results were promising, with all 8 studies reporting good results. All authors used BoNT type A (BoNT-A), either onabotulinum or abobotulinum toxin A. Response rates were variable, with full-response percentages of 32%-60%. As proven by the full-response rates of 50%, repeated injections are as safe and effective as first injections. Only a few cases of urinary tract infection, transient urinary retention, and hematuria have been reported, with no major local or systemic adverse effects. Despite these limitations, evidence encourages and supports BoNT-A use as a safe and effective treatment modality for refractory idiopathic OAB in pediatric settings, regardless of dosage and target toxin. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first systematic review of the use of intravesical BoNT-A for idiopathic OAB treatment in children.

Keywords

Botulinum toxin / Idiopathic detrusor overactivity / Idiopathic overactive bladder / Nonneurogenic detrusor overactivity / Nonneurogenic overactive bladder

Acknowledgments

None.

Statement of ethics

Not applicable.

Conflict of interest statement

No conflict of interest has been declared by the authors.

Funding source

This study received no external funding.

Authors contributions

JBB, MIT: Conceptualization, Investigation, Writing—original draft preparation.

JBB, MIT, GE: Methodology.

JBB, JM: Software.

JBB, MIT, JM, JL, GE: Validation.

JBB, JM, GE: Formal analysis.

JBB, MIT, JM, JL, GE: Writing—review and editing.

All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Data availability

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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