Two studies that link the quality of sleep to the occurrence of erectile dysfunction (ED) and other urologic conditions were presented to reporters during a special press conference at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC, Sunday, May 14, at 2:00 p.m. during the 2011 Annual Meeting of the American Urological Association (AUA). The session will be moderated by Kevin McVary, MD.

Erectile Dysfunction Is Independently Associated With Sleep Apnea In A Large Population Of Middle-Aged Men (#1325): In the largest study to date demonstrating the relationship between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and erectile dysfunction, researchers from Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York evaluated 870 consecutively enrolled men in the ongoing Law Enforcement Cardiac Screening program (LECS), a subset of the World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program. Patients who scored positive on the Berlin Questionnaire (a widely used survey for OSA) were defined to be at high risk for OSA. ED was assessed by use of the International Index of Erectile Function -5 (IIEF-5), and was defined as IIEF of less than 22. A multivariate, binary logistic regression was performed to adjust for age, history of cardiovascular disease, systolic blood pressure, diabetes, smoking and body mass index (BMI).

The mean age of the patients in the study population was 47.3 years, with a mean BMI of 30.2. Sixty-three percent of the patients screened positive for OSA, 5.6 percent had a history of diabetes, and 29 percent had a smoking history. After adjusting for age and comorbidities, the patients with ED were more than twice more likely to have OSA than their normal counterparts. The likelihood of having OSA increased as the severity of erectile dysfunction increased, suggesting that men with this condition should also be screened for OSA.

Sleep Predicts The Development Of Urologic Symptoms In A Longitudinal Study (#57): Sleep is a modifiable risk factor that precedes certain urologic conditions (urinary incontinence [UI], lower urinary tract symptoms [LUTS] and nocturia) in men and women, perhaps operating through inflammatory and other pathways, according to a study by researchers at New England Research Institutes Inc. in Watertown, MA.

In the prospective cohort analyses of 1,610 men and 2, 535 women who completed the baseline and follow-up phases of the Boston Area Community Health (BACH) survey, researchers followed the subjects for five years, assessing sleep disturbance and the development of urologic symptoms. Baseline short sleep duration (men only) was defined as sleeping fewer than five hours per night, and sleep quality was defined as having restless sleep in the past week. LUTS were assessed using the AUA Symptom Index, urinary incontinence was defined as weekly urine leakage, and nocturia was defined as needing to urinate more than two times per night after falling asleep.

Incidence of LUTS among men (8 percent) and women (13 percent) was strongly related to short sleep duration among men and restless sleep among men and women. Incidences of UI and nocturia were associated with restless sleep among women but not men.

"We know that proper amounts of sleep and quality of sleep can impact a wide range of health conditions including erectile function and lower urinary tract symptoms," said AUA spokesperson Kevin T. McVary, MD. "These data may help us better assess how helping patients modify their sleep patterns may help improve their health and overall quality of life."

Source:
American Urological Association