PREVALENCE OF A PHYSICIAN-ASSIGNED DIAGNOSIS OF PROSTATITIS - THE OLMSTED COUNTY STUDY OF URINARY SYMPTOMS AND HEALTH-STATUS AMONG MEN

Objectives. To describe the occurrence of a physician-assigned diagnos is of prostatitis in a community-based cohort. Methods. A sampling fra me of all Olmsted County, Minnesota, male residents was used to random ly select a cohort of men between 40 and 79 years old by January 1, 19 90, to participate in a longitudinal study of lower urinary tract symp toms. The 2115 participants (response rate 55%) completed a previously validated self-administered questionnaire that assessed the prevalenc e of lower urinary tract symptoms, including a history of prostatitis. Subsequently, all inpatient and outpatient community medical records of participants were reviewed retrospectively for a physician-assigned diagnosis of prostatitis from the date of initiation of the medical r ecord through the date of the last follow-up. Results. The overall pre valence rate of a physician-assigned diagnosis of prostatitis was 9%. Men identified with the diagnosis of ''prostatitis'' had symptoms of d ysuria and frequency and rectal, perineal, suprapubic, and lower back pain. Among men with a previous diagnosis of prostatitis, the cumulati ve probability of subsequent episodes of prostatitis was much higher ( 20%, 38%, and 50% among men 40, 60, and 80 years old, respectively). C onclusions. These findings indicate that the community-based prevalenc e of a physician-assigned diagnosis of prostatitis is high, of similar magnitude to that of ischemic heart disease and diabetes. Furthermore , once a man has an initial episode of prostatitis, he is more likely to suffer chronic episodes than men without a diagnosis. Although the pathologic mechanisms underlying these diagnoses are not certain, thes e data provide a first step toward understanding how frequently the di agnosis occurs in the community. (C) 1998, Elsevier Science Inc. All r ights reserved.