Interstitial Cystitis Advice

Story originally posted on February 4, 2006



The results of a small test which was recently carried out at the Cooper Hospital and University Medical Center in Camden, NJ, USA reported positive results for the two patients that it dealt with. Two women who had previously been suffering from Interstitial Cystitis and who had not responded positively to numerous treatment options were placed on a 20 milligram day dosage of the amphetamine, “ dextroamphetamine sulfate”, and not treated with any other IC medications at the same time.

Incidentally both of these women were found to be suffering from the condition idiopathic edema, in which bodily tissues swell as a result of excess fluid retention. The status of their idiopathic edema after trying this medication were not published, and only speculation can exist as to whether or not having IC and this condition could somehow be linked.

Dextroamphetamine sulfate (brand name Dexedrine) is not a weak drug, it's amphetamine status (its also classed as a stimulant) has long seen it labeled as a drug with a potentially high risk of addiction/dependency, but that is of course not to imply that such was even remotely the case here, or that it would be with other IC patients who try this treatment method in the future. It's original uses were to treat conditions like narcolepsy and ADHD and the idea of pursuing it as an IC treatment is a much newer concept.

The published abstract of these observations did not note how long the women took the medication for but clearly indicated that both patients felt a marked improvement in their IC symptoms. In fact the results stated that both women felt that their IC symptoms and related pain had vanished within a week. So long as the ICers stayed on their dosages of dextroamphetamine sulfate the IC symptoms did not return. This was discovered when one of the two ladies accidentally forgot to take her dosage and her IC symptoms promptly returned.

The article capped off by concluding that, “Dextroamphetamine sulfate can be a very effective therapy for recalcitrant cases of interstitial cystitis. Prospective placebo controlled studies are needed to determine what percentage of patients with this debilitating condition have concomitant idiopathic edema as determined by abnormal water load test and how well a larger series will respond to this novel therapy.”

Indeed this is excellent for the two women who are now (assuming that they have remained on the medication) IC symptoms free. But further tests will undeniably need to be carried out in order to see just how exactly this drug is affecting IC symptoms and what it's potential risks and long-term benefits may be. As the example of the missed dosage and it's subsequent re-occurrence of IC symptoms show, it may be that dextroamphetamine sulfate is masking the IC pain and symptoms as opposed to providing any long term healing/regenerative affects. However the fact that these women responded so well (so rapidly) to the treatment is astonishing and preemptively promising in terms of new and emerging IC treatment options.

Information resources:
A novel highly effective treatment of interstitial cystitis causing chronic pelvic pain of bladder origin: case reports