| The following article is part of conference coverage from the 2018 American Urological Association meeting in San Francisco. Renal and Urology News’ staff will be reporting live on medical studies conducted by urologists and other specialists who are tops in their field in kidney stones, prostate cancer, kidney cancer, bladder cancer, enlarged prostate, and more. Check back for the latest news from AUA 2018. |
SAN FRANCISCO—Just over half of men with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) seeking treatment at tertiary referral urology clinics report having urinary incontinence (UI), a prevalence much higher than found in studies of community-dwelling men, according to study findings presented at the American Urological Association (AUA) 2018 annual meeting.
The team, led by Brian T. Helfand, MD, PhD, of NorthShore University Health System in Evanston, Illinois, studied 477 men (mean age 60.9 years, 80% white) seeking care for LUTS at 6 participating tertiary care centers in the Symptoms of the Lower Urinary Tract Dysfunction Research Network. Of these men, 51.1% reported some form of urinary leakage, mostly commonly urge UI (29%) and post-void UI (41%). Additionally, 69% of the cohort reported post-void dribbling.
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The 51% prevalence is significantly higher than the estimated 5% to 12% prevalence of UI found in previous studies of community-dwelling men, the authors noted in a poster presentation.
Current guidelines call for the AUA symptom index questionnaire to be included as part of the initial evaluation of men with LUTS, said Dr Helfand, Division Chief of Urology and Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. This questionnaire, however, is largely insufficient, as it does not capture the frequency, severity and/or bother of urinary incontinence, he said. “This is troublesome because our study demonstrated that a significant proportion of men who present to the urology clinic experience urge incontinence and post void dribbling,” Dr Helfand told Renal & Urology News. “As such, clinicians may be missing an opportunity to intervene and improve patient care by providing the correct treatments for men with lower urinary tract symptoms. This provides a substantial rationale to develop a new urinary symptom questionnaire that offers a more comprehensive symptom assessment.”
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Reference
Helfand BT, Smith AR, Lai HH, et al. Prevalence and characteristics of urinary incontinence in a treatment-seeking male prospective cohort—results from the Symptoms of Lower Urinary Tract Dysfunction Research Network (LURN). Data presented in poster format at the American Urological Association 2018 annual meeting in San Francisco, May 18–21. Abstract MP04-05.
