Increased risk of benign prostate hyperplasia in sleep apnea patients: A nationwide population-based study

Abstract

Background: Sleep apnea ({SA}) is a common sleep disorder characterized by chronic intermittent hypoxia ({IH}). Chronic {IH} induces systemic inflammatory processes, which can cause tissue damage and contribute to prostatic enlargement. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between benign prostate hyperplasia ({BPH}) and {SA} in a Taiwanese population. Methods: The study population was identified from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database ({NHIRD}) and contained 202 {SA} patients and 1010 control patients. The study cohort consisted of men aged (greater-than or equal to)30 years who were newly diagnosed with {SA} between January 1997 and December 2005. Each patient was monitored for 5 years from the index date for the development of {BPH}. A Cox regression analysis was used to calculate the hazard ratios ({HRs}) for {BPH} in the {SA} and control patients. Results: During the 5-year follow-up, 18 {SA} patients (8.9%) and 32 non-{SA} control patients (3.2%) developed {BPH}. The adjusted {HR} for {BPH} was 2.35-fold higher in the patients with {SA} than in the control patients (95% confidence interval ({CI}) 1.28-4.29, P{\textless}.01). We further divided the {SA} patients into 4 age groups. After adjusting for potential confounding factors, the highest adjusted {HR} for {BPH} in the {SA} patients compared with the control patients was 5.59 (95% {CI} = 2.19-14.31, P{\textless}.001) in the patients aged between 51 and 65 years. Conclusion: Our study results indicate that patients with {SA} are associated with increased longitudinal risk of {BPH} development, and that the effects of {SA} on {BPH} development are age-dependent. (copyright) 2014 Chou et al.