Objective To investigate the temporal changes in lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) following transurethral resection of prostate (TURP), assessed using fortnightly completion of the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) as compared to baseline. Patients and Methods This was a prospective observational study. Patients completed the IPSS preoperatively and at 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks postoperatively. Age, body mass index, prior TURP, resected prostate mass, histology, analgesia, symptomatic urinary tract infections (UTIs), and unplanned readmissions were also collected. Results A total of 50 men were enrolled in the study with a mean (SD, range) age of 70.1 (8.4, 47–95) years. The mean (SD) baseline IPSS was 25.5 (7.9) points, indicating severe symptoms in majority of patients. Significant improvement was observed across all timepoints ( P < 0.001 for all comparisons vs baseline, repeated measures analysis of variance). Irritative symptoms saw an immediate improvement at 2 weeks compared to baseline, which was sustained until final follow up. Quality of life improved by 56% and was moderately correlated with frequency ( r = 0.68), weak stream ( r = 0.63) and nocturia ( r = 0.61). Both resected prostate mass and age displayed poor correlation with IPSS symptoms ( r = −0.09 to −0.36 and 0.01 to 0.22 respectively). Analgesia (patient‐reported paracetamol or ibuprofen) use decreased over time to 34%, 16%, 12%, and 8% at 2, 4, 6, and 8 weeks respectively. Antibiotics for UTI were given in 14% of patients, whilst 5% required re‐admission due to clot retention. Conclusion Contrary to common clinician expectations, LUTS did not worsen in the initial postoperative period. Quality‐of‐life scores correlated with a mixture of irritative and obstructive symptoms. These findings now quantify expected rates of improvement postoperatively and allow for further investigation into tailored interventions such as pharmacotherapy to enhance patient experience and outcomes.
Thomson et al. (Sun,) studied this question.
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