Benign prostatic hyperplasia morbidity and mortality among immigrants in Australia and Canada

Previous studies have suggested that the risk of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) varies among racial and ethnic groups. However, these studies have tended to be anecdotal or based on crude proportions or rates. This study describes the age-standardized BPH hospitalization (1985-1987) and mortality (1984-1988) rates (SMRs) for numerous immigrant groups in Australia and Canada. The SMRs for some of the immigrants were compared with those in the origin countries. Both the BPH hospitalization and mortality rates varied markedly among immigrant groups. The most consistent findings were the low rates of Italians and Asians. Relative to the origin country SMRs, the SMRs for the majority of immigrant groups shifted towards the destination native-born rate. This convergence probably resulted from more standard procedures of BPH ascertainment and cause of death recording within a country than between countries, and possibly, from convergence in risk factor levels.