Pp. Sagnier et al., IMPACT OF SYMPTOMS OF PROSTATISM ON LEVEL OF BOTHER AND QUALITY-OF-LIFE OF MEN IN THE FRENCH COMMUNITY, The Journal of urology, 153(3), 1995, pp. 669-673
The impact of symptoms of prostatism on level of bother and quality of
life of French men was assessed nationwide, in a representative commu
nity sample of 2,011 subjects 50 to 84 years old. Bothersome level and
quality of life associated with 12 urinary symptoms were assessed by
face-to-face interviews, using a previously validated questionnaire fo
r benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). The international prostate sympt
om score and the American Urological Association (AUA) bothersome inde
x were also computed. Urgency was by far the most bothersome symptom i
n French men. Nocturia and wetting underclothes ranked second in subje
cts who did not undergo prostate surgery and among symptomatic patient
s, respectively. Overall, symptom frequency accounted for 72% of the v
ariability of symptom bother but the form and strength of this correla
tion varied among symptoms from 0.18 to 0.43. Among the symptomatic su
bjects who had not yet undergone prostate surgery 11%, 10% and 79%, re
spectively, were dissatisfied, neutral and satisfied with the current
urinary condition. Satisfaction with the urinary condition was positiv
ely linked to symptom frequency (p <0.001) and symptom bother level (p
<0.001). Nocturia, dysuria, daytime repeat voiding, wetting clothes a
nd urgency, when severely bothersome, were independent predictors of d
ecreased satisfaction with the urinary condition (p = 0.01). Approxima
tely half of the patients with severe BPH symptoms expressed serious w
orries and concerns with the urinary condition, and sizable levels of
interference by the symptoms with daily activities, which are potentia
lly affected by urinary troubles. The AUA bother index was the best de
terminant of subject level of worry about the urinary condition and of
interference with daily life. This study supported the concomitant us
e of the international prostate symptom score and the AUA bother index
in further research studies of BPH related impairments in quality of
life.