From October, GPs will be able to prescribe the new intermittent contraceptive pill

NICE has recommended a new daily tablet that GPs can prescribe to treat urinary incontinence and other symptoms of overactive bladder syndrome.

The latest in the draft is Vibegron, a bladder muscle relaxant from Pierre Fabre.      

About 330,000 adults will be eligible for the drug when final guidelines are published in September.

GPs will be able to prescribe the drug by October because NICE is using a faster “cost comparison” process, meaning NHS England and the ICB will fund and implement the treatment 30 days after the final guidelines are published.

NICE Vibegron should only be prescribed if antimuscarinics are “inappropriate, insufficiently effective or have unacceptable side effects”.

Approved at a dose of 75 mg once daily, it relaxes the bladder muscles, which means the bladder has “more capacity to store urine,” thereby reducing symptoms of overactive bladder syndrome.     

NICE clinical trials show that Vibegron is more effective than placebo in treating symptoms such as urinary incontinence and incontinence.

The approved dose has not yet been directly compared to mirabegron, which is used when other anti-inflammatory drugs don’t work, but indirect comparisons “suggest there may be an effect.”      

Nice said: “Around 330,000 people in England are eligible for the treatment, which was assessed using a simplified cost-comparison technique, so the draft advice was produced 12 weeks faster than the standard assessment.

Draft guidance published yesterday states that NHS Wales must support NICE-recommended medicines within two months of publication. 

England’s guidance states: “As Vibegron is recommended in the cost comparison process, NHS England and the Integrated Care Council have agreed to bear the costs of implementation 30 days after publication of the guidance.”

Reference

Author: MedBlog18 Blog Team

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