Gosha-jinki-gan, a herbal medicine, is effective for the treatment of female patients with overactive bladder and sensitivity to the cold

The herbal medicine "gosha-jinki-gan" is effective for the treatment of patients with overactive bladder and an increase in peripheral blood flow. We prospectively assessed the relationship between the effectiveness of gosha-jinki-gan for female patients with overactive bladder and an improvement in their sensitivity to the cold. Between December 2012 and March 2016, gosha-jinki-gan 2.5 g t.i.d. was administered to a total of 56 adult female patients with overactive bladder for a period of 4 weeks. Their symptoms were assessed using the Overactive Bladder Symptom Score (OABSS), and their sensitivity to the cold was assessed using a questionnaire about the cold, based on Terasawa's diagnostic criteria. Skin temperature (at the palmar, suprapubic and plantar locations), OABSS and answers to the questionnaire about the cold were obtained at baseline and again at 4 weeks after treatment. Average age was 64 ± 13.8 years. Total OABSS improved significantly at 4 weeks (7.57 ± 3.36 vs. 6.73 ± 3.50), however skin temperature did not increase significantly. In a subgroup analysis, total OABSS was found to have improved significantly at 4 weeks (7.94 ± 3.65 vs. 6.86 ± 3.61) in the 36 women with sensitivity to the cold. However, although it showed a trend for improvement, that improvement was not statistically significant in the 20 women without sensitivity to the cold. Our findings indicated that gosha-jinki-gan improved overactive bladder symptoms more in patients with sensitivity to the cold than in patients without sensitivity to the cold.