Systematic review and meta-analysis: α-adrenergic receptor blockers in chronic prostatitis

Prostatitis seriously endangers the health of men. While they have been widely used in recent years, there remains a lack of systematic evaluation of the clinical efficacy of α-receptor blockers (α-RBs)/α-adrenergic receptor blockers (α-ARBs) in its treatment. Based on this, this study was developed to systematically evaluate the clinical effect of α-ARB in the treatment of prostatitis.

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) studying α-RBs or α-ARBs, placebos, or other measures to treat prostatitis were searched in Cochrane Library, PubMed, Embase, and CBM databases from establishment to December 2020. The quality of included articles was evaluated using the Cochrane System Review Manual and Jadad tools, and a meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.3 software.

A total of six articles meeting the requirements were found and included 450 patients. Meta-analysis showed that the National Institutes of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (NIH-CPSI) score [mean difference (MD) =-1.76, 95% confidence interval (CI): (-3.35 to -0.17), and P=0.03], pain score [MD =-2.24, 95% CI: (-3.65 to -0.83), and P=0.002], voiding symptom score [MD =-1.21, 95% CI: (-2.06 to -0.35), and P=0.006], and quality of life score [MD =-1.40, 95% CI: (-1.48 to -1.33), and P<0.00001] for patients in the experimental group were lower in contrast to those in the control group after the treatment.

The use of α-ARB could significantly improve the treatment effect of patients with prostatitis and improve their quality of life.