Nikita R Bhatt1, Niall F Davis2, W P Witjes3, A Bjartell3,4, C Caris3, A Patel5, A de la Taille6, Mark Speakman7, Luis Martínez-Piñeiro8, A Tubaro9. 1. Department of Urology, Queen Elizabeth Hospital King's Lynn, King's Lynn, England, UK. nikitarb89@gmail.com. 2. Department of Urology, Beaumont Hospital and Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), Dublin, Ireland. 3. EAU Research Foundation, P.O. Box 30016, 6803 AA, Arnhem, The Netherlands. 4. Department of Urology, Skane Hospital, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden. 5. 1st (Past) Chair EAU Research Foundation Clinical Studies Committee, London, UK. 6. Department of Urology, Assistance Publique Des Hopitaux de Paris, 54 Av du Mal de Lattre de Tassigny, 94000, Créteil, France. 7. Department of Urology, Taunton and Somerset, NHS Foundation Hospital, Taunton, UK. 8. Department of Urology, La Paz University Hospital, Madrid, Spain. 9. Department of Urology, Sant'Andrea Hospital, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: To use the European Association of Urology Research Foundation (EAURF) registry data to determine the proportion of contemporary Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms associated with Benign Prostatic Enlargement (LUTS/BPE) patients prescribed phytotherapy, and to determine their subjective quality of life and clinical progression responses. METHODS: This was a prospective multicenter multinational observational registry study, conducted over 2 years. Men ≥ 50 years seeking LUTS/BPE were divided at baseline into two cohorts, presently/recently untreated patients (PUP) commencing pharmacotherapy at baseline and presently/recently treated patients (c-PTP) continuing previously received pharmacotherapy, with 24-month follow-up (FU). RESULTS: Overall, 2175 patients were enrolled with 1838 analyzed. Of the PUP cohort (n = 575), 92 (16%) received phytotherapy and 65 (71%, n = 65/92) completed 24-month FU, with France prescribing 34% (n = 30/89) the highest proportion of phytotherapy among all LUTS/BPE medications. In the c-PTP group (n = 1263), only 69 (5%) patients were using phytotherapy, falling to n = 35/69 (51%) at 24-month FU (highest in France 20% (n = 43/210)). Though defined disease progression occurred in ≤ 20%, with only 1% proceeding to surgical intervention, in both groups, clinically meaningful improvement was lower and symptom persistence was higher in PUP but similar in the treated (c-PTP) patients on phytotherapy compared to the other LUTS/BPE medication. CONCLUSION: Low heterogeneous prescribing rates for phytotherapy were reported in both PUP and c-PTP cohorts over the 24-month FU. Although phytotherapy led to subjective improvements, healthcare practitioners should prescribe them with caution until higher quality evidence and guideline recommendations supporting its use are available.
BACKGROUND: To use the European Association of Urology Research Foundation (EAURF) registry data to determine the proportion of contemporary Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms associated with Benign Prostatic Enlargement (LUTS/BPE) patients prescribed phytotherapy, and to determine their subjective quality of life and clinical progression responses. METHODS: This was a prospective multicenter multinational observational registry study, conducted over 2 years. Men ≥ 50 years seeking LUTS/BPE were divided at baseline into two cohorts, presently/recently untreated patients (PUP) commencing pharmacotherapy at baseline and presently/recently treated patients (c-PTP) continuing previously received pharmacotherapy, with 24-month follow-up (FU). RESULTS: Overall, 2175 patients were enrolled with 1838 analyzed. Of the PUP cohort (n = 575), 92 (16%) received phytotherapy and 65 (71%, n = 65/92) completed 24-month FU, with France prescribing 34% (n = 30/89) the highest proportion of phytotherapy among all LUTS/BPE medications. In the c-PTP group (n = 1263), only 69 (5%) patients were using phytotherapy, falling to n = 35/69 (51%) at 24-month FU (highest in France 20% (n = 43/210)). Though defined disease progression occurred in ≤ 20%, with only 1% proceeding to surgical intervention, in both groups, clinically meaningful improvement was lower and symptom persistence was higher in PUP but similar in the treated (c-PTP) patients on phytotherapy compared to the other LUTS/BPE medication. CONCLUSION: Low heterogeneous prescribing rates for phytotherapy were reported in both PUP and c-PTP cohorts over the 24-month FU. Although phytotherapy led to subjective improvements, healthcare practitioners should prescribe them with caution until higher quality evidence and guideline recommendations supporting its use are available.
Authors: Nicola Frego; Alberto Saita; Paolo Casale; Pietro Diana; Roberto Contieri; Pier Paolo Avolio; Massimo Lazzeri; Rodolfo Hurle; Nicolò Maria Buffi; Giorgio Ferruccio Guazzoni; Giovanni Lughezzani Journal: World J Urol Date: 2021-04-03 Impact factor: 4.226