The effect of transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy on erectile function and lower urinary tract symptoms: a prospective study

Abstract

Background Prostate biopsy (PB) is the gold standard for verifying the diagnosis of prostate cancer in men with clinical symptoms. Transrectal ultrasound (TRUS)-guided PB is the most common method for diagnosis; however, it has a few adverse effects. Mild consequences like bleeding and pain are prevalent but temporary. Since the relationship between erectile dysfunction and lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and TRUS-guided PB is inconsistent in the literature, we aimed to conduct a study on these two consequences on males within 1 month following TRUS-guided PB. Methods Patients with a PSA ≥ 4 ml/ng who were determined to undergoTRUS-guided PB were enrolled in this prospective study. Patients' urinary symptoms and erectile function were evaluated using the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) and International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5) questionnaires the day before and 1 month after PB. Also, using uroflowmetry, the patients' urinary peak flow rate (Qmax) was recorded. SPSS version 18 was used to compare and analyze variables. Results The mean age of the participants was 67.47 ± 9.38 years. Before the PB, the IIEF-5 score was 20.19 ± 7.24, and after the PB, it was 20.25 ± 7.24 (p = 0.865). The Qmax level rose from 7.35 ± 2.15 to 7.74 ± 2 ml/s (p = 0.07). After TRUS-guided PB, the average IPSS score reduced from 11.48 ± 9.93 to 9.88 ± 8.22 which was statistically significant (p < 0.001). Conclusions This study indicated that TRUS-guided PB had no negative impact on erectile function or LUTS in participants and may even relieve urinary symptoms to some extent. Overally, TRUS-guided PB appears to be a safe strategy for evaluating prostate cancer suspects.