[Sexual activity and surgery of benign prostatic hyperplasia]

To analyze the sexual activity of patients before and after surgery for BPH and to determine the factors influencing sexual activity after prostatectomy.

The sexual activity of 189 patients were evaluated before and 6 months after surgery for BPH. Sociodemographic variables, severity of prostatic symptoms (IPSS), quality of life (SF-36) and surgery-related data were also analyzed.

Before surgery, 59% of the patients had sexual activity; 70.9% of patients < 70 years old and 41.6% of those > 70. Of the patients with associated chronic pathologies, 45.5% had no sexual activity and complained of vascular and CNS problems (50% in both cases). A higher proportion of patients with IPSS > or = 20 showed changes in sexual activity (42.3%). The SF-36 quality of life scores for General Health (p = 0.0018), Physical Performance (p < 0.01) and Vitality (p = 0.007) were higher in patients who preserved sexual activity. After surgery, 5.6% of previously active patients reported no sexual activity and 66.2% of those who had no sexual activity prior to surgery recovered sexual potency. Maintenance or recovery of sexual activity after surgery was associated with a better quality of life prior to surgery, basically in the SF-36 Health Survey for Vitality (p < 0.0001), Social Function (p = 0.006), General Health (p = 0.009) and Mental Summary Index (p = 0.005), an improvement in the IPSS score (p = 0.02) and the absence of postoperative complications (p = 0.016).

Sexual activity in patients with BPH is higher in the younger patients with no associated pathologies, milder prostatic symptoms and better quality of life. A high percentage of patients with no sexual activity prior to surgery reported recovery of sexual potency after surgery. Sexual activity after surgery is associated with a better quality of life before surgery, basically in the mental aspects, improvement of prostate symptoms and the absence of postoperative complications.