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Abstract
Purpose
Recently, the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is increasing among patients with low urinary tract symtoms (LUTS) caused by benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH). We assessed current usage and awareness of phytotherapy, the most ubiquitous CAM, in BPH/LUTS patients.
Materials and Methods
A total of 204 patients with BPH who completed a questionnaire between January 2009 and December 2010 were enrolled. The questionnaire was composed of questions about age, education level, accompanying disease, type of phytotherapy, route of purchase, reason of taking medicine and whether the patient is using phytotherapy in combination with conventional medicine.
Results
The mean age was 55.5±8.7 years. 56 of the total patients (27.5%) were using phytotherapy. The patients who were accompanied with erectile dysfunction used phytotherapy the most. The most commonly used phytotherapy for prescription and health functional food was Saw palmetto. The most common route of purchase was by clinician's prescription (46.4%). Most patients answered the dissatisfaction of present treatment's effect as the main reason for using phytotherapy. The number of patients who were taking combination therapy of BPH medication and phytotherapy was much more than using phytotherapy alone.
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Table 1.
Characteristics of patients
Table 2.
Types of phytotherapy used by patients
Table 3.
Channels of purchase
Table 4.
Purpose of phytotherapy use
| No. of cases (%) | |
|---|---|
| Dissatisfaction with conventional medicine | 20 (35.7) |
| Less side effects | 16 (28.6) |
| More efficient | 10 (17.9) |
| Inexpensive | 10 (17.9) |
| Total | 56 (100) |
Table 5.
Percentage of combination treatment
| No. of cases (%) | |
|---|---|
| Phytotherapy＋medication | 44 (78.6) |
| Phytotherapy only | 12 (21.4) |
| Total | 56 (100) |
Table 6.
Currently available phytotherapeutic agents for BPH/LUTS in Korea
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