Influence of environmental factors on chronic prostatitis-like symptoms in young men: results of a community-based survey

• Published in: Urology (Ridgewood, N.J.) Vol. 58; no. 6; pp. 853 - 858
• Main Authors: Ku, Ja Hyeon, Kim, Min Eui, Lee, Nam Kyu, Park, Young Ho
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY Elsevier Inc 01-12-2001; Elsevier Science
• Subjects: Adult; Analysis of Variance; Biological and medical sciences; Chronic Disease; Cross-Sectional Studies; Educational Status; Ejaculation; Gynecology. Andrology. Obstetrics; Humans; Korea - epidemiology; Male; Mammary gland diseases; Medical sciences; Odds Ratio; Pain - etiology; Perineum; Prevalence; Prostatitis - complications; Prostatitis - epidemiology; Regression Analysis; Seasons; Socioeconomic Factors; Tumors; Korea; Human; Symptomatology; Chronic; Urinary system disease; Pain; Prostate disease; Ejaculation; Young adult; Male; Prostatitis; Diagnosis; Male genital diseases
• ISSN: 0090-4295; 1527-9995
• DOI: 10.1016/S0090-4295(01)01424-8

Objectives. To investigate the influence of environmental factors on chronic prostatitis-like symptoms among young men in a community.
Methods. Of 28,841 men aged 20 years dwelling in the community, a total of 16,321 men (response rate 56.6%) were included in this study. The National Institutes of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index was used to identify men with chronic prostatitis-like symptoms. The questionnaire also queried sociodemographic characteristics. The Korean Meteorological Administration provided information on the weather of the community. We determined the risk factors of chronic prostatitis-like symptoms among these environmental factors using univariate and multivariate analyses.
Results. Six percent of the men were identified as having significant prostatitis-like symptoms (perineal and/or ejaculatory pain and a total pain score of 4 or greater). The univariate logistic regression analysis indicated that education level, average duration of sunlight, and average temperature were risk factors for chronic prostatitis-like symptoms. As these variables increased, the scores of chronic prostatitis-like symptoms decreased. In the multivariate model used, the likelihood of chronic prostatitis-like symptoms varied by the final educational level, with middle school and high school graduates having 1.8 and 1.4-fold higher odds, respectively, than men attending college. In the same model, the average duration of sunlight was also an independent risk factor of chronic prostatitis-like symptoms (odds ratio 0.85; 95% confidence interval 0.77 to 0.95;
P = 0.003), but the average temperature lost statistical significance.
Conclusions. Our findings suggest that the community-based prevalence of chronic prostatitis-like symptoms may be high in young men. Higher education and a longer time in sunlight were associated with a decreased likelihood of chronic prostatitis-like symptoms.