Finasteride significantly reduces acute urinary retention and need for surgery in patients with symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia

• Published in: Urology (Ridgewood, N.J.) N.J.), 1997-06, Vol.49 (6), p.839-845
• Main Authors: Andersen, Jens T., Curtis Nickel, J., Marshall, Villis R., Schulman, Claude C., Boyle, Peter
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acute Disease; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Biological and medical sciences; Enzyme Inhibitors - therapeutic use; Finasteride - therapeutic use; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Nephrology. Urinary tract diseases; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Prospective Studies; Prostatic Hyperplasia - complications; Prostatic Hyperplasia - surgery; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Sensitivity and Specificity; Surgical Procedures, Operative - statistics & numerical data; Tumors of the urinary system; Urinary Retention - etiology; Urinary Retention - prevention & control; Urinary system; Urinary tract. Prostate gland
• ISSN: 0090-4295; 1527-9995
• DOI: 10.1016/S0090-4295(97)00185-4

Objectives. A pooled analysis of all available randomized trials with 2-year follow-up data with finasteride and placebo was undertaken to further investigate recent observations that finasteride use may reduce the occurrence of acute urinary retention (AUR) and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)-related surgical intervention. Methods. Occurrences of AUR and surgical intervention were examined by treatment group in a pooled series of 4222 men with moderately symptomatic BPH. Results. In total, 81 occurrences of AUR were reported, 24 (1.1%) of 2113 in the finasteride group and 57 (2.7%) of 2109 in the placebo group. The hazard ratio was consistent in all three studies, with a 57% decrease in the hazard rate for occurrence of AUR with finasteride compared with that for placebo present in the pooled data set over the 2-year study period ( P