Nocturia is more bothersome than daytime LUTS: Results from an Observational, Real-life Practice Database including 8659 European and American LUTS patients.

PURPOSE: Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) encompass several diagnoses, including overactive bladder (OAB) and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Nocturia is a standalone symptom, but also included in OAB and BPH. Current discussion addresses whether the overlap of the diagnoses is too broad, leading to misdiagnosis. This study explored the differences in level, causes and consequences for patients with a diagnosis of daytime LUTS compared with a diagnosis of nocturia, and discussed whether people are being treated for the symptoms that truly bother them the most.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: Data were drawn from a survey of physicians and patients in France, Germany, Spain, UK and USA. Physicians filled out patient record forms (PRFs) for patients with LUTS diagnosis. The patients completed the patient self-completion form (PSC). Three PRO questionnaires were included; the OAB-q SF, NI-Diary and WPAI. Patients were grouped based on the diagnoses assigned to them by their physicians in a real-life setting.

RESULTS: Eight thousand seven hundred and thirty eight patients had a LUTS diagnosis and 5335 completed a PSC. Patients diagnosed with night-time symptoms were significantly more bothered by their LUTS than only daytime LUTS patients (all questionnaires P < .0001). Patients with nocturia reported being tired "always" or "usually" more often than patients with daytime problems only (P < .0001). Only 13% of patients with nocturia had an initial sleep period of more than 2-3 hours.

CONCLUSION: In this population of real-life patients, those with a diagnosis of nocturia reported significantly higher impact on their quality of life than patients with a diagnosis of daytime LUTS only. The underlying causes of bother were related to sleep problems. It is essential that nocturia is understood, treated and monitored as a distinct problem from OAB and BPH, to ensure that patients are treated for their main symptom.