Urinary Microbiome Changes Following Administration of 500 mg of NDS-446 in Women With Dry OAB at 12 Weeks - a Single-center Study

While this treatment algorithm is the recommended approach to OAB management, recent research has resulted in the development of a new paradigm that may influence how this condition is treated in the future. This research focuses on the urinary microbiome and for a decade it has been known that urine is not sterile. Expanded Quantitative Urine Culture (EQUC) techniques have allowed for more comprehensive and accurate 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing of the urinary microbiome. Changes in the abundance and diversity of the resident microbiota have been associated with a number of urogenital conditions including interstitial cystitis, urinary incontinence, responses to OAB medications and symptoms of urinary tract infections. These studies provide insight to the fact that the microbiome plays an important role in the maintenance of a healthy urogenital tract. Thus, treatments that target the microbiome for one condition may work for others by similar mechanisms, especially when there is considerable symptom overlap between the two conditions as there is in UTIs and OAB.

One such treatment is cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) extract, which has long been used as complementary therapy for a variety of medical conditions. Health benefits are linked to the presence of phytochemicals present in the fruit- anthocyanins, flavonols, tannins, proanthocyanidins, and phenolic acid derivatives. Cranberry is known to be effective in the prevention of UTIs. In a recent study examining its use in women with dry OAB, daily dried cranberry improved urgency symptoms and number of daytime voids. In addition, the authors reported an improvement in the validated subjective instrument, Patient Perception of Bladder Condition (PPBC). Moderately symptomatic LUTS in men improved following 6 months of daily dried cranberry powder. Therefore, the investigators aim to investigate changes to the female urinary microbiome in women with dry OAB who take daily dried cranberry extract. This study aims to quantify a change in urinary frequency, urinary urgency, and PPBC following the daily use of a cranberry extract called NDS-446. The investigators also have an ancillary hypothesis that women who are post-menopausal will develop a urinary microbiome more similar to pre-menopausal women by the end of the study. Lastly, the investigators will measure the levels of extracellular (eATP) in the urine of participants. It has been previously shown that higher levels of eATP are associated with worsening OAB symptoms.