Cardiovascular risk independently predicts small functional bladder storage capacity.

Area of Science:

• Urology
• Cardiology
• Geriatrics

Background:

• Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity globally.
• Nocturia, or the need to urinate at night, affects a significant portion of the male population.
• Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk score quantifies 10-year risk of cardiovascular events.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between the ASCVD risk score and functional bladder capacity (FBC) in men presenting with nocturia.
• To determine if higher ASCVD risk correlates with reduced FBC in an outpatient urology setting.

Main Methods:

• Secondary analysis of voiding diaries from men aged 40-79 with nocturia.
• Exclusion of patients with prior cardiovascular disease or nocturnal polyuria.
• Stratification based on high-risk ASCVD threshold (≥20%) and assessment for small FBC (≤200 ml), with logistic regression for association analysis.

Main Results:

• Eighty-four men were included; 42.9% met the high-risk ASCVD threshold.
• High-risk ASCVD patients were significantly more likely to have small FBC (63.9% vs. 29.2%, p=0.002).
• ASCVD risk score independently predicted small FBC on multivariate analysis, even after controlling for BMI and benign prostatic obstruction.

Conclusions:

• A small functional bladder capacity is associated with a higher predicted cardiovascular event rate in men with nocturia.
• This finding highlights a potential link between urological health and cardiovascular risk in aging men.