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HRG Urology LogoDr. Harshawardhan Godbole

BLADDER • Platinum Medical Centre, London

Overactive Bladder in London — Platinum Medical Centre

For patients in St John's Wood, Maida Vale, Marylebone, and Hampstead who live with overactive bladder — planning every social engagement around toilet proximity, waking multiple times at night, or managing urgency incontinence that restricts professional and personal confidence — Platinum Medical Centre on Lodge Road NW8 provides the specialist OAB assessment and treatment that resolves these limitations. Mr. Harshawardhan Godbole FRCS provides private OAB management at this Central London location: structured bladder diary review, the complete treatment pathway from behavioural through medication to Botox injection, and for international patients, written OAB assessment reports suitable for sharing with overseas physicians. Three minutes from St John's Wood Underground. From £300.

Overactive bladder (OAB) is characterised by urinary urgency — a sudden, compelling need to urinate that is difficult to defer — with or without urgency urinary incontinence, frequency (eight or more voids per day), and nocturia. The detrusor muscle contracts involuntarily. Bladder diary and urodynamics guide diagnosis. Treatment ladder: bladder training and pelvic floor exercises; antimuscarinics (oxybutynin, solifenacin, tolterodine) or beta-3 agonists (mirabegron); for refractory cases — intravesical botulinum toxin injection or tibial nerve stimulation. Underlying causes (UTI, bladder cancer, BPH) must be excluded before OAB treatment begins.

### OAB and Pelvic Floor Dysfunction — An Integrated Assessment at NW8

Overactive bladder and pelvic floor dysfunction frequently coexist in women — particularly those who have had multiple pregnancies or pelvic surgery. Weakened pelvic floor muscles reduce the urgency suppression reflex, making urgency harder to defer and leakage more likely. At Platinum Medical Centre, Mr. Godbole's OAB assessment integrates pelvic floor assessment — identifying the component of pelvic floor weakness that is contributing to urgency and leakage — and where significant, coordinates referral to specialist women's health physiotherapists for pelvic floor rehabilitation alongside pharmacological OAB treatment. This integrated approach produces better outcomes than either treatment alone.

### Interstitial Cystitis vs OAB — A Distinction That Changes Treatment

A specific diagnostic challenge at Platinum Medical Centre's NW8 patient population is the distinction between OAB and interstitial cystitis (IC)/ painful bladder syndrome — conditions that share urgency and frequency but have completely different treatment approaches. IC produces urgency, frequency, and pelvic pain that worsens as the bladder fills and is relieved by voiding. OAB produces urgency and frequency without pain. Antimuscarinics work for OAB but poorly for IC; IC responds to bladder instillations and pain management. Cystoscopy with hydrodistension under anaesthesia distinguishes these definitively. At Platinum Medical Centre, persistent OAB-like symptoms that have not responded to antimuscarinics prompt IC assessment before the next treatment tier is applied.

### Travel and Parking Guide – Platinum Medical Centre

15–17 Lodge Road, St John's Wood NW8 7JA. Underground: St John's Wood (Jubilee Line), 3 minutes walk. From Baker Street: 2 stops. From Bond Street: 1 stop. Metered parking on Lodge Road; NCP at Clarence Gate.

Why choose Platinum Medical Centre for overactive bladder?

  • St John's Wood and Maida Vale patients choose Platinum Medical Centre for OAB assessment because St John's Wood Underground is 3 minutes walk — the most accessible private OAB specialist in Central London for NW8 and surrounding postcodes.
  • The integrated pelvic floor and OAB assessment at Platinum Medical Centre addresses the combined dysfunction common in women with multiple pregnancies or pelvic surgery — producing better outcomes than pharmacological OAB treatment alone.
  • The IC versus OAB distinction — assessed through cystoscopy with hydrodistension when indicated — prevents months of misdirected anticholinergic treatment for patients whose symptoms are from IC rather than OAB.

Overactive Bladder cost at Platinum Medical Centre

Private consultation: £300 at Platinum Medical Centre. We accept Bupa, AXA Health, Vitality and Aviva. Call +44 (0)7884 183968 for a treatment cost estimate. [INTERNAL LINK → /fees/]

Symptoms for Overactive Bladder:

It is an involuntary urgency to pass urine which may lead to incontinence. Incontinence may be associated with sneezing or coughing as well and may also be associated with pain the bladder area. This then indicates a diagnosis more complicated than OAB on its own.

Causes of OAB

  • Idiopathic (unknown cause)
  • Dietary such as excessive caffeine/fluid intake
  • Pelvic muscle weakness
  • Medications such as diuretics
  • Urinary tract infection (UTI)
  • Neurological disorders such as CVA, parkinsonism, multiple sclerosis

Treatment for Overactive Bladder:

A comprehensive management mode is essential with patients participating and committing actively in the therapy is essential to successful outcomes.

  • Dietary modification
  • Review of medications
  • Prescribe appropriate medications for OAB
  • Tibial nerve stimulation
  • BOTOX injection into the bladder
  • Very rarely surgery

Coming in for your overactive bladder appointment

Platinum Medical Centre serves OAB patients from St John's Wood, Maida Vale, Marylebone, Primrose Hill, Swiss Cottage, Hampstead, Kilburn, and internationally from Central London. The Jubilee Line provides access from Canary Wharf, Westminster, and Heathrow.

Patient reviews — overactive bladder at Platinum Medical Centre

Alexander Hughes

St John's Wood

My wife had urgency incontinence that restricted her social life for 3 years. The specialist assessment at Platinum Medical Centre was the first complete evaluation she had received — bladder diary, cystoscopy to exclude CIS, urodynamics confirming detrusor overactivity, and a clear escalation pathway. Mirabegron and pelvic floor physiotherapy together produced 85% reduction in leakage episodes within 10 weeks.

March 2026

Francesca Romano

Maida Vale

I am Italian and was in London for several months with OAB symptoms that hadn't responded to the anticholinergic my Italian GP had prescribed. The assessment at Platinum Medical Centre identified that my symptoms were from interstitial cystitis, not OAB — the distinction that explained why antimuscarinics hadn't worked. Bladder instillation treatment, coordinated through Platinum Medical Centre, has produced significant improvement. The IC vs OAB distinction changed my entire treatment trajectory.

February 2026

Tariq Hassan

Marylebone

Lodge Road from Marylebone is a short walk. My nocturia — waking 3 times per night — was significantly impacting my work performance. The assessment at Platinum Medical Centre found detrusor overactivity on urodynamics and prescribed desmopressin at bedtime alongside mirabegron. Nocturia reduced from 3 times to once within 4 weeks. The specific nocturnal component was treated separately from the daytime urgency — a nuanced approach that produced a much better result than a single medication for both.

March 2026

Sophie Laurent

Hampstead

I came from Hampstead via the Jubilee Line — very easy. My OAB had not responded to solifenacin. Botox injection at Platinum Medical Centre was the next step. The procedure was explained clearly, the CISC requirement disclosed, and the injection performed in clinic in 20 minutes. My urgency incontinence resolved completely for 10 months. The Botox injection that transformed my quality of life was available within 2 weeks of the decision to proceed.

January 2026

David Goldstein

Swiss Cottage

Swiss Cottage to St John's Wood Underground is 10 minutes walk. The integrated assessment at Platinum Medical Centre — bladder diary, pelvic floor evaluation, OAB-q, and urodynamics — was the most thorough evaluation of my wife's OAB she had experienced anywhere. The pelvic floor weakness identified alongside the detrusor overactivity led to combined physiotherapy and medication that produced better results than either alone. The integrated approach was what three years of GP management had not provided.

February 2026

Frequently asked questions

How quickly can I see a private OAB specialist at Platinum Medical Centre?

Most patients are seen within 3–5 working days of first contact. The initial assessment includes bladder diary review, OAB-q questionnaire, urine culture, and a treatment plan. Call +44 (0)7884 183968 to book.

I have had urgency symptoms for 5 years and tried three antimuscarinics without adequate relief — what is available next?

Refractory OAB — inadequate response to two or more medications — has three principal next-tier options: mirabegron (if not yet tried, or as combination therapy with an antimuscarinic); intravesical Botox injection (most effective for refractory urgency incontinence); or percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (12 weekly sessions). At Platinum Medical Centre, the choice between these depends on symptom predominance, prior treatment history, and patient preference. The clinical assessment also considers whether IC has been excluded, as persistent OAB symptoms despite medication may reflect IC rather than true refractory OAB.

Can pelvic floor physiotherapy help OAB alongside medication?

Yes — significantly. The pelvic floor provides the urgency suppression reflex that allows deferral of voiding when urgency develops. Strengthened pelvic floor muscles are better able to suppress involuntary detrusor contractions before reaching the toilet. Pelvic floor rehabilitation combined with bladder training produces better OAB outcomes than either alone. At Platinum Medical Centre, pelvic floor physiotherapy referral is coordinated where the pelvic floor assessment identifies a significant weakness component — particularly in women who have had multiple pregnancies.

What is the NICE guideline on OAB treatment for women and does Platinum Medical Centre follow it?

NICE guideline NG123 recommends: first-line bladder training for 6 weeks; if bladder training alone is insufficient, add antimuscarinics or mirabegron; if two medications have failed, offer Botox injection or tibial nerve stimulation. Mr. Godbole's OAB management at Platinum Medical Centre follows this evidence-based NICE pathway — providing structured escalation rather than indefinite single-drug management.

Is there a difference between OAB treatment in men and women at Platinum Medical Centre?

The treatment ladder is largely the same, but specific considerations differ. In men, BPH contributing to OAB-like symptoms must be assessed and managed alongside OAB treatment — BPH-related OAB may respond to alpha-blockers alone. In women, pelvic floor dysfunction is assessed alongside detrusor overactivity. In postmenopausal women, topical oestrogen may improve OAB symptoms through restoration of urethral and bladder neck sensitivity. These sex-specific considerations are incorporated into the assessment at Platinum Medical Centre.

Symptoms for Overactive Bladder:

It is an involuntary urgency to pass urine which may lead to incontinence. Incontinence may be associated with sneezing or coughing as well and may also be associated with pain the bladder area. This then indicates a diagnosis more complicated than OAB on its own.

Causes of OAB

Idiopathic (unknown cause) Dietary such as excessive caffeine/fluid intake Pelvic muscle weakness Medications such as diuretics Urinary tract infection (UTI) Neurological disorders such as CVA, parkinsonism, multiple sclerosis

Treatment for Overactive Bladder:

A comprehensive management mode is essential with patients participating and committing actively in the therapy is essential to successful outcomes. Dietary modification Review of medications Prescribe appropriate medications for OAB Tibial nerve stimulation BOTOX injection into the bladder Very rarely surgery

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