Bladder Wall Thickness May Predict BOO Severity

Bladder wall thickness (BWT) may offer a quick and easy way to predict severity of bladder outlet obstruction (BOO) in men, researchers say.

In a study of 236 men with lower urinary tract symptoms secondary to benign prostatic hyperplasia, Özer Güzel, MD, and colleagues at the Ankara Numune Research and Training Hospital in Turkey, examined the relationship between BWT and poor indictors for BOO: International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) above 19, Qmax less than 15 mL/min, and post-void residual (PVR) greater than 100 mL. The investigators used suprapubic ultrasonography to measure BWT.
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Patients had a mean age of 62.5 years and mean BWT of 3.8 mm. The mean IPSS, Qmax, PVR, and duration of LUTS were 17.7, 13.7 mL/min, 89.9 mL, and 46.5 months, respectively, the investigators reported in Urology (2015;86:439-444). Results showed that BWT increased when the number of BOO parameters increased. BWT was 2.9 mm in patients without BOO, whereas BWT was 3.5, 4.1, and 4.5 mm in patients with any 1, any 2, and all parameters of BOO, respectively.

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