What is Oxybutynin?

This medicine also has an extended-release tablet that is being used as a treatment to children from 6 years old and older that have overactive bladders that are caused by schizophrenia or a nerve disorder called spina bifida. 

Oxybutynin is also only available if you have a doctor’s prescription and is available as a tablet with extended-release, syrup, and general tablet.

Side Effects

Just as with any other medicine, Oxybutynin has some side effects that you might experience and might affect your body. One of the most common ones is drowsiness and inability to urinate since the medicine stops the spasms in your bladder. 

Some of the more common side effects are constipation, having dry mouth and blurry vision, dizziness, and drowsiness, sweating less than usual – this increases the risk of a person to catch fever, overheating, or getting heatstroke, especially if you live in a warm or hot temperature-areas, trouble sleeping and migraine or headaches. 

These side effects are usually mild and will disappear in a few days or just a couple of weeks. In any case that they are more severe or will not go, immediately talk to your doctor or pharmacist.  

Serious side effects of Oxybutynin

A patient must be aware of his body to be able to tell if he will need a medical emergency due to the serious side effects like mouth dryness caused by Oxybutynin. If you think that you are in a threatening situation, immediately call your emergency number.

Some serious side effects of Oxybutynin include not being able to empty your bladder, or lack of urge to urinate. You can also experience swelling around the eyes, the lips, the genitals, the hands or the feet.

Dosage and Administration

The dosage and the administration of Oxybutynin will depend on a lot of things that your doctor will decide on, that’s why the doctor needs to know about your medical history and other important matters about your health. The dosage, the form, and the schedule of you taking Oxybutynin will depend on your age, your condition that needs treatment, the severity of your condition, the other medical conditions that you have, and how you will react on your first dosage. 

Forms and strengths of Oxybutynin

There are many forms and strengths of Oxybutynin, depending on your condition. And your doctor’s prescription. One of the most common is Oxybutynin as its Generic name. It is an immediate-release oral tablet and has the strength of 5mg, 10mg, and 15mg.

For the branded type, you have the Ditropan XL as an extended-release oral tablet and the strength 5mg, 10mg and 15mg.

Dosage for overactive bladder

Immediate-release oral tablet

There are also different types of immediate-release oral tablets for different ages of people. For adults aged 18-64 years old, the typical starting dosage will be 5mg of Oxybutynin taken orally from two to three times a day. The maximum dosage is 5mg taken orally for up to four times a day. 

For children aged 6 to 17 years old, the typical dosage is 5mg of Oxybutynin taken orally up to two times daily, while the maximum dosage is 5mg taken orally up to three times daily. 

For senior citizens aged 65 years old or older, the doctor will start with the dosage of 2.5mg of Oxybutynin taken daily up to two to three times. 

Extended-release oral tablet

For the extended-release oral tablets, adults aged 18 and older will be given a dosage of 5mg to 10mg taken orally, but only once a day, at the same time. The dosage will increase by 5mg for a time, every week until you have received the maximum of 30mg daily. 

For children aged 6 to 17 years old, the starting dosage is 5mg a day taken orally at the same time of the day. The doctor will increase the dosage up to 5mg in a given time until the maximum dosage of 20mg per day is received.

The same dosage goes the same with people who have overactive bladder. 

Drug Interaction

The drug Oxybutynin has side effects on your body. It also contains substances that may interact with other drugs or medications that you are taking in. An interaction happens when the substance a person takes in is changing the way the medicine, this time Oxybutynin, works on the body. It can be harmful and prevent the drug from working well. 

For you not to experience drug interactions, it is necessary that you tell your doctor all the relevant information that you are getting. This way, the doctor can manage all the medication and give you the proper prescription. To also further know-how Oxybutynin can interact with other medicines, vitamins, or herbal medicine that you are taking, do not hesitate to ask about it to your physician or pharmacist.

For people who are taking in depression drugs, Oxybutynin may have a different effect on your body and how the drug works. Taking Oxybutynin anti-depressant drugs may increase the side effects the patient is experiencing. Some of the drugs include amitriptyline and nortriptyline.

People who also take in allergy drugs like chlorpheniramine and diphenhydramine are exposed to a heightened risk of side effects because of the way the body absorbs the drugs when taken together with Oxybutynin.

Psychosis and schizophrenia drugs will also make the risk of Oxybutynin side effects increase. So, taking medications like chlorpromazine and thioridazine together with Oxybutynin will have a different effect when absorbed by your body. 

Some antifungal drugs will also increase the side effects of Oxybutynin in your body. People should not drink Oxybutynin together with ketoconazole and ketoconazole.

Dementia drugs called cholinesterase inhibitors like donepezil, galantamine, and rivastigmine, when taken together with Oxybutynin, might make the symptoms of dementia worse. 

Warnings and Precautions

the medicine Oxybutynin can cause a severe allergic reaction, so people with allergies are asked to be careful of taking in this drug. Some of the symptoms of severe allergic reactions include trouble breathing, swelling of the throat or the tongue, hives, and severe skin reactions. It is necessary for people who have already experienced having an allergic reaction to Oxybutynin not to take it again. The response of the second allergic reaction could be fatal. 

People who are taking in Oxybutynin should not drink alcohol since alcohol worsens the risk of side effects, like drowsiness and dizziness. It can also make a person’s overactive bladder symptoms worse. 

Warnings for certain groups

People with autonomic neuropathy will make stomach problems worse if they take in Oxybutynin. People with this condition should take caution when using Oxybutynin.

For the people that have bladder outlet obstructions, Oxybutynin will increase the risk of people’s inability to empty their bladders. 

• If you have stomach problems, Oxybutynin can cause other stomach problems, especially if you have experienced having ulcerative colitis, reflux, or stomach pains.
• If a person has myasthenia gravis, your symptoms can become worse if you take in Oxybutynin.

As stated earlier, people with dementia who takes in Oxybutynin can make the symptoms of dementia worse. 

• If you are pregnant, Oxybutynin is still considered a category B drug. This means either the research in animals did not show any risk to the child when the mother took in the drugs, or there are not enough studies that the drug was tested to humans to be able to prove that the drugs do not pose a risk to the baby. 
• If you are planning to become pregnant or are currently pregnant, it is necessary that you should tell your doctor. The studies on animals do not prove that the way they receive the medication will be the same as the way the humans will receive it. Oxybutynin should, therefore, only be used when you are pregnant if it is really necessary.
• If you are breastfeeding, it is necessary to talk to your doctor before taking in the medicine. There are no known studies that oxybutynin can be passed via breast milk, but if, in any case, it does, there might be severe side effects to the child who was breastfed. There might be a possibility that you will either be asked to stop breastfeeding or stop taking the medication. 

For the children ages five and below, there are no established studies about the effectiveness of oxybutynin yet.

Overdose and Contraindications

It is necessary to visit the doctor regularly, so the progress of your medication can be monitored and checked. This will give the doctor the opportunity to see if the medication is appropriately working on you and if you should continue using it. 

Do not take other medicines together with oxybutynin unless provided by your doctor so you can avoid the negative side effects of the drug.