Striated muscle in the prostatic apex: does the amount in radical prostatectomy specimens predict postprostatectomy...

To investigate whether the amount of striated muscle (SM) removed with the apical aspect of the prostate at prostatectomy can be predictive of postprostatectomy urinary incontinence (UI).

The records of 61 consecutive patients seen in follow-up after prostatectomy were reviewed. Complete clinical data were collected. Two uropathologists reviewed the hematoxylin and eosin sections of the apical margin to semiquantitatively assess the amount of SM according to the following scheme: 0 = no SM, 1 = 1%-10% SM (of total tissue), 2 = 11%-30% SM, and 3 = >30% SM. Continence status was determined based on the last clinical visit, with UI considered as any reported leakage.

Patients had a median age of 62 years at surgery (interquartile range, 58-66 years) and had a median follow-up after surgery of 100 weeks (interquartile range, 50-176 weeks). Both prostate weight and SM score (P = .045 for both) were statistically significant predictors of incontinence on multivariate analysis. The odds of a patient with an average SM score of ≥2 being incontinent was 11.7 times that of a patient with an average score of <2. Using an SM score of ≥2 had a specificity of 98% and a sensitivity of 19% for detecting incontinence in patients after radical prostatectomy.

The amount of SM seen in the pathology specimen after radical prostatectomy has a significant effect on postoperative UI.