Study: COPD Drugs Can Result in Urinary Problems

We didn't set out to make this "COPD Week" on the blog, but intriguing new information just seems to keep popping up!

A study out of Canada found that anticholinergics, a drug class used to treat COPD, can result in urinary problems, especially in men. The drug class includes treatments such as Spiriva (tiotropium), Atrovent (ipratropium bromide) and Combivent (ipratropium combined with albuterol).

The researchers analyzed the medical records of 565,000 men and women aged 66 and older who were diagnosed with COPD. Of the subjects, 9,432 men and 1,806 women developed an inability to pass urine. Men who were on inhaled anticholinergics were 40 percent more likely to develop the condition than men who had been taking the drugs for four weeks or less. Men with enlarged prostate glands were 80 percent more likely to be unable to pass urine.

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