Prevalence and bother of postmicturition dribble in Finnish men aged 30–80 years: Tampere Ageing Male Urologic Study (TAMUS)

Abstract

Objective. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and bother of postmicturition dribble in relation to age in the male population. Material and methods. Information for a population-based study was collected by means of a mailed self-administered questionnaire, which was returned by 4384 men out of 7470 (58.7%). The participants were men aged 30–80 years from the Pirkanmaa Region in Finland. The Danish Prostatic Symptom Score (DAN-PSS-1) questionnaire was used to evaluate their urinary symptoms. SPSS was used in the data analysis. Two-sided chi-squared test and Kendall tau-b test were used for analysis. Results. The overall prevalence of postmicturition dribble was 58.1% (95% confidence interval 56.6–59.6). Prevalence of postmicturition dribble increased with age (p < 0.001). In men aged 60–80 years, two-thirds reported postmicturition dribble and approximately one out of four had dribbling into their trousers after voiding. In the 30-year-old group, over 40% reported postmicturition dribble and almost one out of five had also dribbling into their trousers. One out of five men in the 30-year-old group reported minor bother; the proportion of men reporting bother increased with age to one-third of the men in the oldest cohort (p < 0.001). Conclusions. The prevalence of the postmicturition dribble was found to be high in this survey. Half of the 30-year-old men and two-thirds of the men aged 60–80 years had postmicturition dribble. Dribbling into trousers increased with age but as a severe symptom, it was rare (0.5%). Minor problems from postmicturition dribble were common, but major bother occurred seldom (1.1%).

Key Words::

• bother
• epidemiology
• lower urinary tract symptoms
• postmicturition dribble
• prevalence.

Acknowledgement

The work of Antti Pöyhönen is supported by a grant from the Finnish Urological Association.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper