The prevalence of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in Brazil: Results from the epidemiology of LUTS (Brazil LUTS) study

We performed the first large population-based study to evaluate lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in Brazil. The study objective was to assess the prevalence and bother of LUTS in the population aged ≥40 years in five major cities of Brazil.

This study was conducted as a telephone survey with assessment of LUTS using a standardized protocol, which included the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) and, for overactive bladder (OAB), the OAB-V8 questionnaire. Participants were asked to rate how often they experienced individual LUTS and the degree of associated bother.

Of the 5184 participants, 53% were women, and the age group with most participants (34%) was 50-59 years. The prevalence of LUTS (symptoms occurring less than half the time or more) was 75%: 69% in men and 82% in women. There was a statistically significant association between the frequency and bother intensity of each symptom (P < 0.001). The prevalence of OAB was similar in men and women (25% and 24%, respectively). According to the IPSS questionnaire, moderate-to-severe symptoms were present in 21% of men and 24% of women. LUTS detrimentally affected quality of life in many individuals: 39% would be "mostly dissatisfied," "unhappy," or consider it "terrible" to spend the rest of their life with their urinary condition as it is currently.

This was the first nationwide, population-based epidemiological study of LUTS to be performed in Brazil. LUTS are highly prevalent and often bothersome among men and women aged ≥40 years.

Neurourology and urodynamics. 2017 Nov 06 [Epub ahead of print]

Roberto Soler, Cristiano Mendes Gomes, Marcio Augusto Averbeck, Mitti Koyama

Astellas Pharma Brazil, São Paulo, Brazil., University of São Paulo School of Medicine, São Paulo, Brazil., Department of Urology, Moinhos de Vento Hospital, Porto Alegre, Brazil., Kamiyama Statistical Consulting, Sâo Paulo, Brazil.