Flavoxate Hydrochloride is used to treat certain urinary tract symptoms. This is a type of medicine called a muscle relaxant that relaxes the muscles in the bladder. This drug helps to reduce leaking of urine, frequent trips to the bathroom, feelings of needing to urinate right away, and bladder pain. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has already approved this prescription.
The condition that this drug is used for is called Interstitial cystitis. It is a chronic condition that causes bladder pain, bladder pressure, and sometimes pelvic pain. The pain ranges from mild discomfort to severe pain. Interstitial cystitis is a part of a spectrum of diseases known as painful bladder syndrome. Your bladder is a hollow muscular organ that stores urine. The bladder expands until it’s full and then signals to your brain that it’s time to urinate. It also communicates through the pelvic nerves. This creates the urge to urinate for most people. With interstitial cystitis, these signals get mixed up. You may feel the need to urinate more often and with smaller volumes of urine than most people.
Interstitial cystitis most often affects women and can have a long-lasting impact on the quality of life. The signs and symptoms of interstitial cystitis vary from person to person. Interstitial cystitis signs and symptoms include:
- Pain between the scrotum and anus in men
- Pain in your pelvis or between the vagina and anus in women
- A persistent and urgent need to urinate
- Chronic pelvic pain
- Pain or discomfort while the bladder fills and relief after urinating.
- Frequent urination and often of small amounts throughout the day and night up until 60 times a day
- Pain during sexual intercourse.
Symptoms severity is different for everyone and some people may experience symptom-free periods. Although signs and symptoms of interstitial cystitis may resemble those of a chronic urinary tract infection, there’s usually no infection. However, symptoms may worsen if a person with interstitial cystitis gets a urinary tract infection.
The exact cause of interstitial cystitis is likely to be of that many factors that contribute. For instance, people with interstitial cystitis may also have a defect in the protective lining of the bladder. A leak in the epithelium may let toxic substances in urine irritate your bladder wall. Other possible but unproven contributing factors include heredity, infection, an autoimmune reaction, or allergy.
How does Flavoxate Hydrochloride work?
Flavoxate Hydrochloride works by relaxing the involuntary muscle that is found in the wall of the bladder. This muscle can sometimes contract in uncontrollable spasms and can cause an uncontrollable urge to pass urine, an increase in the number of times you need to pass urine, and involuntary leakage of urine. By relaxing the muscle in the bladder wall, Flavoxate Hydrochloride lessens unstable contractions of the bladder. This increases the capacity of the bladder and reduces the need to pass urine.
How to use Flavoxate Hydrochloride?
The dosage is based on your medical condition and response to the treatment. Your doctor may lower your dose after your symptoms have improved. The length of treatment depends on the cause of the problem. You should not increase your dose or take this medication more often without the approval of your doctor. Your condition will not improve any faster and the risk of side effects may be increased as well. Let your doctor know if your condition does not improve or gets worse. Your doctor may give you a lower dose of this prescription and increase it gradually depending on the result of your condition.
Remember to take the medication at the same time and in the same way each day. Drink plenty of fluids and limit alcoholic beverages. Do not share this with others even if they have the same symptoms as yours. If you missed a dose, call your doctor for directions. Do not twice the dose to make up for the missed dose.
What are the side effects of Flavoxate Hydrochloride?
Medicines and their possible side effects can affect individual people in different ways. The following are some of the side effects that are known to be associated with this drug. Some side effects of this medicine may include:
- Vomiting
- Nausea
- Headache
- Dry mouth
- Dizziness
- Drowsiness
- Blurred vision
- Spinning sensation
- Fever
- Nervousness
Call your doctor right away if you have these side effects:
- Eye pain
- mental/mood changes such as confusion
The side effects listed above may not include all of the side effects of this medication. If there are other side effects occur, call your doctor right away.
Warnings and Precautions
- This drug may cause blurred vision and drowsiness. If affected, do not drive or operate machinery.
- Use this with caution in elderly people, people with glaucoma, and men with an enlarged prostate gland.
- This should not be used in children under 12 years of age, people with a blockage in the gut, obstruction of the intestine due to reduced activity of the muscle in the gut, bleeding in the stomach, or with obstruction of the urinary tract.
- For people with a constriction of the food pipe due to the inability of the muscle to relax, this drug should also be used carefully.
- This should not be used if you are allergic to any of its ingredients. Inform your doctor if you previously experienced such an allergy. If you feel experienced an allergic reaction, stop using the medicine and let your doctor know right away.
- Certain medications should not be used during breastfeeding or pregnancy. However, other drugs may be safely used in breastfeeding or pregnancy providing benefits to the mother. Always inform your doctor if you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy before using any medications.
- This medication can cause decreased sweating. To lessen the risk of a serious reaction to too much heat, avoid becoming overheated in hot weather.
- Tell your doctor if you have any other medications including vitamins or food/herbal supplements.
- Do not give this prescription to others with the same condition as yours.
