Association between predictors of progression of benign prostatic hyperplasia and moderate-to-severe prostatitis-like...

We investigated the association between moderate-to-severe prostatitis-like symptoms and the predictors of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) progression.

Men who underwent health checkups were analyzed. We classified symptoms as "moderate to severe" if the pain score according to the National Institutes of Health-Chronic Prostatitis Symptoms Index was ≥8 and predictors of the progression of BPH were defined as having a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) ≥1.6 ng/mL, total prostate volume (TPV) ≥31 mL, international prostate symptom score (IPSS) ≥20, and maximal flow rate (Q_max) <10.6 mL/s. A total of 8368 patients formed the cohort for propensity score matching, including 445 men with moderate-to-severe prostatitis-like symptoms and 5390 men with no symptoms; ultimately, however, the propensity score of these groups matched at a 1:2 ratio.

After propensity matching, the two groups were evenly distributed with respect to age, International Index of Erectile Function-5 score, metabolic syndrome, and testosterone. The percentage of participants with ≥1 predictor for the progression of BPH, a TPV of ≥31 cm³, PSA levels of ≥1.6 ng/mL, Q_max <10.6 mL/s, and IPSS ≥20 were all greater in men with moderate-to-severe prostatitis-like symptoms. There were significant differences in the percentage of participants with ≥1 predictor for the progression of BPH (30.6% vs. 58.0%; p < 0.001), Q_max <10.6 mL/s (3.9% vs. 7.0%, p = 0.023), and IPSS ≥20 (9.6% vs. 44.7%, p < 0.001).

Moderate-to-severe prostatitis-like symptoms are significantly and independently associated with predictors of BPH progression.