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Prostate, enlarged

How common is it?

As you get older, your prostate can get bigger and cause troublesome symptoms. Doctors call this condition benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH.

BPH affects mainly older men. In fact, most men in their 80s and 90s have some symptoms of an enlarged prostate. It's rare for men to have an enlarged prostate if they're under age 40. But about 1 in 10 men in their 50s will get BPH. And around 2 or 3 men in 10 who are in their early 70s will get the condition.

Source:
Bosch JL, Hop WC, Kirkels WJ, et al.
Natural history of benign prostatic hyperplasia: appropriate case definition and estimation of its prevalence in the community.
Urology. 1995; 46 (supplement): 34-40.

Here are some more facts and figures about BPH.

In the United States, 1 in 4 men will have been treated for BPH by the time they reach age 80.

Source:
Barry MJ.
Epidemiology and natural history of benign prostatic hyperplasia.
Urologic Clinics of North America. 1990, 17: 495-507.

²
Around 5.6 million American men have symptoms of an enlarged prostate.

Source:
Jacobsen SJ, Girman CJ, Guess HA, et al.
Natural history of prostatism: longitudinal changes in voiding symptoms in community dwelling men.
Journal of Urology. 1996; 155: 595-600.

³ By 2025, this number is expected to double as more men live to their 80s and 90s.

Source:
Bruskewitz R, Issa M, Roehrborn C, et al
A prospective, randomized 1-year clinical trial comparing transurethral needle ablation to transurethral resection of the prostate for the treatment of symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia
J Urol 1998; 159: 1588-1594

⁴
All older men are at risk of BPH, and your chance of getting symptoms increases as you get older. But your symptoms will not always get worse as you age. For more, see What will happen to me?
By age 55, about 1 in 4 men will have noticed a decrease in the force of their stream of urine. This goes up to 1 in 2 men by age 75.

Source:
McConnell, J
Epidemiology, etiology, pathophysiology, and diagnosis of benign prostatic hyperplasia.
In: Campbell MF, Walsh PC, Retik AB. Campbell's Urology. 8th edition. WB Saunders, New York, U.S.A.; 2002.

⁵
An enlarged prostate is the leading reason for prostate surgery, which is the second most common operation for men over age 65. (Cataract surgery is the most common.)

There are some things that make it more likely that you will get an enlarged prostate.

Your age: Your chances of getting an enlarged prostate increase as you get older.

Source:
Medina JJ, Parra RO, Moore RG.
Benign prostatic hyperplasia (the aging prostate).
Medical Clinics of North America. 1999; 83: 1213-1229.

⁶
Your family history: Enlarged prostates seem to run in some families. If your father or brother has had BPH, then you are at greater risk of getting it.
Your race: Black men seem to have enlarged prostates that need surgery more often than white men do. And Asian men seem to be less likely than white men to need surgery. These trends need more study, and may be due to things such as diet.

Source:
Sideny S, Quesenberry CP, Sadler MC, et al
Incidence of surgically treated benign prostatic hypertrophy and of prostate cancer among black and white mutliphasic examinees in a prepaid health care plan.
American Journal of Epidemiology. 1991; 134: 825-829.

⁷

Source:
Platz EA, Kawachi I, Rimm EB, et al.
Race, ethnicity and benign prostatic hyperplasia in the health professionals follow-up study.
Journal of Urology. 2000; 163: 490.

⁸

Source:
Lagiou P, Wuu J, Trichopoulou A, et al.
Diet and benign prostatic hyperplasia: a study in Greece.
Urology. 1999; 44: 688.

⁹

Sources for the information on this page:

Bosch JL, Hop WC, Kirkels WJ, et al.Natural history of benign prostatic hyperplasia: appropriate case definition and estimation of its prevalence in the community.Urology. 1995; 46 (supplement): 34-40.

Barry MJ.Epidemiology and natural history of benign prostatic hyperplasia.Urologic Clinics of North America. 1990, 17: 495-507.

Jacobsen SJ, Girman CJ, Guess HA, et al.Natural history of prostatism: longitudinal changes in voiding symptoms in community dwelling men.Journal of Urology. 1996; 155: 595-600.

Bruskewitz R, Issa M, Roehrborn C, et alA prospective, randomized 1-year clinical trial comparing transurethral needle ablation to transurethral resection of the prostate for the treatment of symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasiaJ Urol 1998; 159: 1588-1594

McConnell, JEpidemiology, etiology, pathophysiology, and diagnosis of benign prostatic hyperplasia.In: Campbell MF, Walsh PC, Retik AB. Campbell's Urology. 8th edition. WB Saunders, New York, U.S.A.; 2002.

Medina JJ, Parra RO, Moore RG.Benign prostatic hyperplasia (the aging prostate).Medical Clinics of North America. 1999; 83: 1213-1229.

Sideny S, Quesenberry CP, Sadler MC, et alIncidence of surgically treated benign prostatic hypertrophy and of prostate cancer among black and white mutliphasic examinees in a prepaid health care plan.American Journal of Epidemiology. 1991; 134: 825-829.

Platz EA, Kawachi I, Rimm EB, et al.Race, ethnicity and benign prostatic hyperplasia in the health professionals follow-up study.Journal of Urology. 2000; 163: 490.

Lagiou P, Wuu J, Trichopoulou A, et al.Diet and benign prostatic hyperplasia: a study in Greece.Urology. 1999; 44: 688.

This information was last updated on Oct 13, 2008

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