Use of baclofen in children with dysfunctional voiding: a preliminary report

INTRODUCTION: The aims of the present study were to examine the effectiveness and safety of baclofen in children with dysfunctional voiding (DV). MATERIAL AND METHODS: Thirty children with primary DV were enrolled. Patients underwent history taking, complete physical examination, urine analysis and culture, ultrasonography of the urinary system, a uroflowmetry study and post urine residue analysis. The Dysfunctional Voiding Symptom Score (DVSS) questionnaire was completed and other related symptoms were recorded. Oral baclofen was started for the study group at a dose of 1 mg/kg in 3 divided doses. Ultrasonography, a uroflowmetry study and questionnaire were repeated 3 months later. RESULTS: We observed a mean decrease of 14.67 ml in post void residual urine (PVRU) after 3 months. After usage of baclofen, increase in Qmax (5.74), increase in mean flow rate (8.2 vs. 11.3), and an average decrease of 12.3 in the DVSS questionnaire (p <0.001) were also observed. The number of voluntary voiding and wetting episodes were significantly decreased after treatment with baclofen (p = 0.001). Three main complaints of the patients were urgency (p = 0.001), dysuria (p = 0.004) and straining (p = 0.004) and all were significantly decreased after medical therapy with baclofen. CONCLUSIONS: Baclofen may be useful in treatment of pediatric dysfunctional voiding. It was well tolerated among our patients with a remarkable reduction in their symptoms.