Marijuana, Alcohol, and ED: Correlations with LUTS/BPH

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) is a disease complex with enormous societal burden and yet the pathogenesis of LUTS/BPH is poorly understood. We set out to review the literature on the relationship between depression, marijuana usage, and erectile dysfunction (ED) to LUTS/BPH.

LUTS/BPH has independent associations with depression as well as with ED. In each case, the causality and mechanistic relationship is unknown. The impact of marijuana, as it increasingly pervades the general population, on the disease complex of LUTS/BPH is not well studied but recent results support short-term benefit and long-term caution. Depression, a form of central nervous dysfunction, and ED, which is likely mediated via endothelial dysfunction, are independently associated with LUTS/BPH. The presence of cannabinoid receptors in urologic organs, coupled with recent population studies, supports a modulatory effect of marijuana on voiding although an enormous knowledge gap remains.