Men with severe lower urinary tract symptoms are at higher risk of depression than those with less severe urinary symptoms, according to a study recently published in the International Neurourology Journal, and titled “Men With Severe Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms Are at Increased Risk of Depression.”
Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) occur in more than 70 percent of men over age 80, and in a large percentage of men with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Several studies have recently reported that BPH and subsequent LUTS increase the incidence of depression and decrease the quality of life.
To test this assumption, Won Sik Jeong from the Department of Urology, Hanyang University College of Medicine in Seoul, South Korea, and colleagues conducted a rural, community-based survey to evaluate the relationship between LUTS and depression.
Two validated questionnaires were used to examine LUTS and depressive symptoms: the International Prostate Symptom Score/quality of life (IPSS/QoL), and the Korean version of the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale (CES-D-K). Patients were categorized in the depressive symptom group if their CES-D-K score was greater than 16 points.
A total of 711 men took part in the study. Of these, 33 participants (4.92%) had depressive symptoms whose presence was associated with severe LUTS.
The odds ratio (OR) of depression, in comparison to participants in the mild LUTS group, was 2.868 in the moderate LUTS group, and 4.133 in the severe LUTS group.
Considering variables such as age, education level, smoking, and exercise, the OR for depression in the moderate LUTS group was 2.534, and 3.910 among those with the severe LUTS. Additionally, depression was found to be associated to voiding symptoms.
“These data would emphasize the importance of the correlation, and the need for screening and LUTS treatment,” the researchers wrote, concluding, “men with severe LUTS have a higher risk of depression than do those with mild and moderate LUTS. The severity of voiding symptoms worsens the DEPs [depression]. Given its potential influence on depression and quality of life, there is a need for more aggressive urological diagnosis and treatment of LUTS.”
Depression has been associated with a number of chronic diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, inflammatory bowel disease, arthritis, diabetes, cancer, and myocardial infarction.