FRIDAY, Sept. 15, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- For men with lower urinary tract symptoms, treatment is associated with a reduced risk for death, according to a study published in the Oct. 1 issue of The Journal of Urology.

Blayne Welk, M.D., and J. Andrew McClure, from Western University in London, Ontario, Canada, conducted a secondary analysis of the Medical Treatment of Prostate Symptoms randomized trial of placebo, doxazosin, finasteride, or a combination of doxazosin and finasteride involving 3,046 men aged older than 50 years with moderate-to-severe lower urinary tract symptoms. The relationship between the American Urology Association (AUA) Symptom Score and death was examined.

The researchers found that the hazard ratio for death was 0.96 for each 1-point improvement in the AUA Symptom Score. A similar significant reduction in the hazard ratio for death was seen for men who had active treatment, but not for those randomly assigned to the placebo arm. The results were unchanged when men were censored at the time of transurethral prostate resection, after adjustment for potential confounding variables, or with a shorter observation period after the last study visit. With 1-point improvements in the storage and voiding subscales individually, comparable significant reductions in death were seen (hazard ratios, 0.94 and 0.95, respectively).

"We found a small but significant decrease in mortality risk for older men who received medications for treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms," Welk said in a statement. "The findings suggest that we may need to view urinary symptoms differently, possibly with an emphasis on earlier treatment."

One author is a consultant for Becton, Dickinson, and Company.