Even men not bothered by their nocturia symptoms benefit from treatment, according to new study findings published in the World Journal of Men’s Health.
Of 98 Korean men with prostate volumes greater than 20 mL and 2 or more voids nightly, 50 were annoyed by their symptoms and 48 were not, Sang-Kuk Yang, MD, PhD, of Konkuk University and colleagues reported. No patient had nocturnal polyuria, prostate or bladder cancer, or had used diuretics, alpha blockers, 5-alpha reductase inhibitors (5-ARIs), or anti-muscarinics.
All patients then received nocturia treatment such as an alpha blocker, 5-ARI, or desmopressin for 12 weeks at the discretion of their physicians. From baseline to 12 weeks, mean nocturia episodes decreased from 2.4 to 1.5 in the non-bothering group and from 2.5 to 1.4 in the bothering group. The mean total International Prostate Symptom Score fell by 5.8 and 5.2 in the 2 groups respectively, indicating improvement in lower urinary tract symptoms. Men from both groups also reported improvement in discomfort. On the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire, nocturia question 2b (a visual analogue scale of bother from 0 to 10), scores improved from 3.9 to 2.7 and from 6.9 to 4.6, respectively. All results were significant, and no significant between-group differences were observed.
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“Our results imply that treatment was beneficial for patients even if they were unaware of the discomfort caused by nocturia,” Dr Yang and the team wrote. They suggested that nocturia interferes with sleep, reduces daily activity, and even contributes to depression.
Notably, the cause of nocturia in each patient was unknown, which is a limitation. In addition, some patients dropped out of the study due to lack of treatment efficacy or adverse effects.
The study was funded by Astellas Pharma, which manufactures Myrbetriq and VESIcare, among other drugs.
Reference
Park K, Park HK, Kim SW, et al. Is it worth treating non-bothering nocturia? Results of a multicenter prospective observational study. World J Men’s Health. DOI:10.5534/wjmh.170003 [Published online May 17, 2018]
