Administering onabotA: Improving patient comfort and easing anxiety

As with any office-based procedure, patients may have some anxiety when they come in to receive onabotulinumtoxinA for their overactive bladder (OAB). Ensuring patient comfort throughout the entire procedural journey –– from checking in at the front desk to patient follow-up –– is essential.

In an interview with Urology Times®, Benjamin M. Brucker, MD, walks through specific actions that physicians and other staff can take to ease patient’s anxiety and ensure comfort during the onabotA procedure, which were addressed in the publication, “Expert Opinions on Best Practices for Overactive Bladder Management with onabotulinumtoxinA.”¹

This should be the goal from the second the patient walks in the door, Brucker noted. In regard to pre-procedure steps, he emphasized the importance of ensuring that the entire team understands what the visit is and what is expected of them.

“You can imagine that whole journey that the patient’s in the office could be 30 minutes, maybe an hour, but the actual procedure itself is much shorter. That's where we really need the team to be on-board to make it a very positive patient experience,” he explained.

Brucker is a urologist and urogynecologist at NYU Langone Health in New York, New York.

EP: 1.Optimizing onabotA for OAB: What are some common misconceptions?

EP: 2.Karyn S. Eilber, MD, on patient counseling for onabotA treatment for OAB

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EP: 3.Administering onabotA: Improving patient comfort and easing anxiety

EP: 4.Considerations for patient follow-up after onabotA administration

There are several actions that care teams can take throughout the procedure as well, including considering the patient’s physical comfort, asking about and addressing any lingering concerns, and providing the patient with things such as stress balls to make the situation more comforting.

Brucker noted, “We talk a little bit about what the ‘during the procedure’ will be, as I'm getting ready for this, just so that if it's their first time, they're not wondering why I'm talking to the medical assistant, or why I'm doing certain things. We talk a lot about where their eyes should be, whether they want to watch or not watch. We try to tell people not to close their eyes [and] not to scrunch their face, because that sometimes exacerbates or worsens some of the symptoms or concerns that they have.”

Then, immediately following the procedure, physicians should ensure that patients understand what the follow-up will be. All of these come together to ensure a positive patient experience.

REFERENCE

1. Eilber KS, Brucker BM, Pezzella A, et al. Expert opinions on best practices for overactive bladder management with onabotulinumtoxinA. Toxins (Basel). 2025;17(4):207. doi:10.3390/toxins17040207