Associations of the lower urinary tract symptoms with the lifestyle, prostate volume, and metabolic syndrome in the elderly males

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the influence of the lifestyle, prostate volume (PV), and metabolic syndrome (MS) on lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in the elderly males. A total of 764 men aged greater than 40 years were enrolled. Their severities of LUTS were assessed by the International Prostate Symptom Score questionnaire, while their MS was diagnosed according to the criteria developed by the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III. Lifestyle factors, PV, and components of MS were compared between no/mild and moderate/severe LUTS groups. In univariate analysis, age, cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity, and PV significantly correlated with the severity of LUTS, but the presence or any components of MS did not. Results of multivariate analysis showed that aging, cigarette smoking, lack of regular exercise, and larger PV were independent predictors for moderate/severe LUTS. Notably, the risk factors for LUTS was influenced by the presence of MS. PV may play a role in determining the severity of LUTS for men without MS, while physical activity was the critical factor for men with MS. It was suggested that healthy lifestyle would be beneficial to lessen the severity of LUTS in the elderly males.

Keywords::

• Elderly males
• lifestyle
• lower urinary tract symptoms
• metabolic syndrome
• prostate volume

Acknowledgments

This study was supported by grants from Taiwan National Science Council (NSC 98-2314-B-037-030-MY3; NSC 99-2314-B-037-022-MY3), Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital (KMUH 99-9R12; KMUH 99-9R13; KMUH 99-9R14; KMUH 100-0R42) and partly by 97-CCH-KMUH-001. Special thanks the assistance from the Statistical Analysis Laboratory, Department of Medical Research, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University.

Declaration of Interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest.