The Prevalence of Benign Prostate Hyperplasia in Korea: Using National Health Insurance Service Data

Objectives: To provide evidences for effective management and prevention of benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) by analyzing the status of the prevalence of BPH in Korea. Methods: This study was conducted on patients diagnosed with BPH from the claim data of the Korean National Health Insurance Service between 2012 and 2016. We calculated the age-standardization prevalence of patients with BPH and conducted comparative analysis by region and year. Results: The prevalence of age-standardization was 10,847.09 per 100,000 population in 2012 (95% CI, 10,828.72-10,865.47) and 23,552.31 in 2016 (95% CI, 23,526.70-23,577.92). According to comparative analysis by administrative districts, the cumulative prevalence was the highest at in Daejeon (26,076.23, 95% CI, 25,239.64) and the lowest in Ulsan (20,966.97, 95% CI, Also, the proportion of patients who did not visit continuously was 23.5% in 2013 and 37.1% in 2016. Conclusions: The prevalence of BPH increased by 46% in 2016 compared to 2012, and the prevalence increased with age. Therefore, in order to prevent BPH related health problem, it is necessary to develop a systematic management and preventive policy for a super-aged society.