Smoking, socioeconomic status ups LUTS risk, worsens sleep, stress in men over 40

Among men ≥40 years of age, socioeconomic status, age, and lifelong smoking all appear to be correlated with moderate-to-severe lower urinary tract syndrome (LUTS), reports a recent study. In turn, LUTS leads to worse sleep quality and stress level.

The study included 5,355 men who had undergone assessment using the International Prostate Symptom Score (I-PSS) from 2014 to 2020. Most (71.5 percent; n=3,827) were found to have none to mild LUTS, while 24.6 percent (n=1,317) and 3.9 percent (n=211) had moderate and severe LUTS, respectively.

Multivariable analysis found that increasing age was a significant indicator for both moderate-to-severe (odds ratio [OR], 1.044, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.036–1.052; p<0.001) and severe (OR, 1.05, 95 percent CI, 1.034–1.066; p<0.001) LUTS. The same was true for the lifelong amount of smoking (moderate-to-severe: OR, 1.011, 95 percent CI, 1.007–1.015; severe: OR, 1.017, 95 percent CI, 1.009–1.024; p<0.001).

Similarly, having low income was a significant predictor of moderate-to-severe (OR, 1.224, 95 percent CI, 1.013–1.479; p=0.036) and severe (OR, 1.753, 95 percent CI, 1.243–2.474; p=0.001) LUTS.

In turn, moderate (OR, 2.012, 95 percent CI, 1.761–2.300; p<0.001) and severe (OR, 3.422, 95 percent CI, 2.467–4.747; p<0.001) I-PSS findings significantly aggravated the risk of sleep disorder. A similar effect was reported for moderate-to-severe stress (moderate I-PSS: OR, 1.861, 95 percent CI, 1.622–2.136; p<0.001; severe I-PSS: OR, 3.196, 95 percent CI, 2.374–4.302; p<0.001).