We evaluated the efficacy and safety of add-on treatment with a β3-adrenoceptor agonist (mirabegron) for overactive bladder symptoms remaining after α1-blocker (tamsulosin) treatment in men with benign prostatic obstruction. Patients with benign prostatic obstruction with urinary urgency at least once per week and a total OABSS of 3 or more points after 8 or more weeks of treatment with tamsulosin were enrolled in the study. They were randomly allocated to receive 0.2 mg tamsulosin daily or 0.2 mg tamsulosin and 50 mg mirabegron daily for 8 weeks. The primary end point was change in total OABSS. Safety assessments included change in post-void residual urine volume and adverse events. From January 2012 through September 2013 a total of 94 patients were randomized. Of these patients 76 completed the protocol treatment. In the full analysis set the change in total OABSS during the treatment period was significantly greater in the combination group than in the monotherapy group (-2.21 vs -0.87, p=0.012). The changes in scores for urinary urgency, daytime frequency, International Prostate Symptom Score storage symptom subscore and quality of life index at 8 weeks were significantly greater in the combination group. The change in post-void residual urine volume was significantly greater in the combination group. Although 6 patients experienced adverse events in the combination group, urinary retention was observed in only 1 patient. Combined tamsulosin and mirabegron treatment is effective and safe for patients with benign prostatic obstruction who have overactive bladder symptoms after tamsulosin monotherapy.

Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate whether the preoperative degree of bladder outlet obstruction (BOO), detrusor underactivity (DUA) or detrusor overactivity (DO) affected the short‐term outcome of transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) for patients with lower urinary tract symptoms suggestive of benign prostatic hyperplasia (LUTS/BPH).Methods: Ninety‐two patients with LUTS/BPH aged 50 years or older who were considered to be appropriate candidates for TURP were included in this study. Pressure‐flow study and filling cystometry were performed to determine BOO, DUA and DO before TURP. The efficacy of TURP was determined at 3 months after surgery using the efficacy criteria for treatment of BPH assessed by the International Prostate Symptom Score, QOL index, maximum flow rate and postvoid residual urine volume.Results: On preoperative urodynamics, 60%, 40% and 48% of patients showed BOO, DUA and DO, respectively. After TURP, 76% showed ‘excellent’ or ‘good’ overall efficacy, whereas only 13% fell into the ‘poor/worse’ category. The efficacy was higher as the preoperative degree of BOO worsened. In contrast, neither DO nor DUA influenced the outcome of TURP. However, the surgery likely provided unfavorable efficacy for patients having DO but not BOO. Only 20% of the patients who had both DO and DUA but did not have BOO achieved efficacy.Conclusions: Transurethral resection of the prostate is an effective surgical procedure for treatment of LUTS/BPH, especially for patients with BOO. DUA may not be a contraindication for TURP. The surgical indication should be circumspect for patients who do not have BOO but have DO.

Objectives: A large‐scale nationwide epidemiological survey of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) was conducted via the Internet in 2023 to clarify the current prevalence of LUTS and evaluate its impact on daily life in Japan.Methods: The survey was conducted among individuals aged 20–99 years old who had anonymously registered with a Japanese online research company. The survey consisted of 48 questions related to LUTS and daily life.Results: A total of 6210 participants (3088 females and 3122 males), who were selected by probability sampling based on the composition of the Japanese population (age range: 20–99), were recruited. The overall prevalence of LUTS was 77.9% among the subjects aged ≥20 and 82.5% among those aged ≥40. The prevalence of LUTS differed between the sexes and trends toward significant increases in prevalence with age were seen for almost all LUTS. Furthermore, the prevalence of overactive bladder (OAB) was 11.9% among the subjects aged ≥20 and 13.8% among those aged ≥40. This study also showed that LUTS negatively affected daily life. However, the percentage of subjects who visited a physician to receive treatment for LUTS was low, including for participants with a history of treatment for LUTS, although this increased with age.Conclusion: The prevalence of LUTS, including OAB, increased with age and negatively affected daily life. However, since the percentage of patients who visit a physician to receive treatment for LUTS remains low, further educational activities regarding LUTS are necessary.

Gender-affirming hormone treatment generally by cross-sex hormones is an important strategy for transgender people to achieve the physical features affirming their experienced gender. Estrogens and androgens are administrated, usually for a long time, to transgender women and transgender men who would like to physically achieve feminization and masculinization, respectively. Several harmful adverse events have been reported in the literature following the administration of gender-affirming hormones, including worsening of lipid profiles and cardiovascular events (CVE) such as venous thromboembolism, stroke, and myocardial infarction, but it remains unknown whether the administration of cross-sex hormones to transgender people increases the subsequent risk of CVE and death. Based on the findings of the present narrative review of the recent literature, including meta-analyses and relatively large-scale cohort studies, it is likely that estrogen administration increases the risk of CVE in transgender women, but it remains inconclusive as to whether androgen administration increases the risk of CVE in transgender men. Thus, definitive evidence guaranteeing the long-term safety of cross-sex hormone treatment on the cardiovascular system is insufficient because of lack of evidence from well-organized, high-quality, and large-scale studies. In this situation, as well as considering the proper use of cross-sex hormones, pretreatment screening, regular medical monitoring, and appropriate intervention for risk factors of CVE are necessary to maintain and improve the health of transgender people.