Body mass index (BMI) and pelvic floor muscle exercise were strong predictors for postprostatectomy lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) among patients with prostate cancer (PC), according to results of a study published in the Journal of Clinical Nursing.
LUTS after radical prostatectomy for the treatment of prostate cancer have been found to decrease quality of life. To assess which factors increase risk for experiencing these symptoms, 65 patients with prostate cancer who underwent laparoscopic radical prostatectomy at the Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital in China between 2019 and 2020 were enrolled in this study. Some patients underwent perioperative pelvic floor muscle exercise training, which comprised 10 pelvic floor muscle contractions lasting 10 seconds repeated 4 to 5 times per day.
Occurrence rate for LUTS was reported as 53.85%. Patients with and without LUTS were mean age 70.26±7.32 and 68.57±5.72 years (P >.05) and had an average BMI of 26.76±3.22 and 24.46±4.68 kg/m2, respectively (P <.05). No significant effect on LUTS were observed for prostate-specific antigen levels, whether patients underwent robot-assisted surgery, or mean catheterization time (all P >.05).
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BMI was observed to increase risk for LUTS (odds ratio [OR], 3.906; 95% CI, 1.265-12.063; P =.018) and pelvic floor muscle exercise training to decrease risk (OR, 0.254; 95% CI, 0.081-0.795; P =.019).
This study was limited by its small sample size and short follow-up duration (3 months).
Patients who underwent prostatectomy for prostate cancer were less likely to experience LUTS if they underwent perioperative pelvic floor muscle training. These findings indicated that incorporating simple perioperative muscle training programs may increase quality of life for patients with prostate cancer undergoing prostatectomy.
Reference
Yilin Z, Fenglian J, Yuanling W, Chunye G, Shuang L, Peizhen L. Predictors for lower urinary tract symptoms in patients underwent radical prostatectomy: implications for postoperative nursing care. J Clin Nurs. Published online September 12, 2021. doi:10.1111/jocn.15981
This article originally appeared on Oncology Nurse Advisor
