[Incidence of benign prostatic hyperplasia and hepatic cirrhosis]

We studied the incidence of benign hyperplasia of the prostate and hepatic cirrhosis in an ambulatory cohort. Undisturbed androgen production is one of the prerequisites for the development of benign prostatic hyperplasia. The disturbed metabolic activity of the cirrhotic liver causes often hypoandrogenism. Therefore a decreased incidence of prostatic hyperplasia is expected for patients with cirrhosis. All male patients of european origin over 40 newly admitted for treatment at the medical outpatient clinic in Zürich during a period of 6 months were enrolled. From a cohort of 2038 males over 40 a benign prostatic hyperplasia was diagnosed in 124. Nine had cirrhosis of the liver. In 6 patients cirrhosis was found in addition to benign prostatic hyperplasia. The study also confirmed an increased incidence of benign prostatic hyperplasia with age. The incidence of cirrhosis, however, decreased with age in our study, probably as a consequence of reduced life expectancy of the cirrhotic patient. The combined incidence of benign prostatic hyperplasia and hepatic cirrhosis became less common with age than benign prostatic hyperplasia alone. This corresponded to our expectations. This collection of epidemiologic data on benign prostatic hyperplasia and hepatic cirrhosis disclosed several difficulties that should be considered for future studies.