Phosphodiesterase inhibitors for lower urinary tract symptoms consistent with benign prostatic hyperplasia

Tadalafil versus tamsulosin as combination therapy with 5-alpha reductase inhibitors in benign prostatic hyperplasia, urinary and sexual outcomes

PURPOSE

To compare the urological and sexual outcomes of using either tamsulosin/finateride or tadalafil/finasteride as combination therapies in patients with large prostate.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Selection criteria included prostate volume > 40 ml and IPSS > 7. Patients with severe erectile dysfunction (IIEF-erectile functions ≤ 10) were excluded. Patients were randomized into group I (tamsulosin/finasteride) and group II (tadalafil/finasteride). The primary endpoint was to define urinary and sexual function changes (IPSS, IPSS-quality of life, urinary flow rates and IIEF domains) within each group. The secondary endpoint was to compare the treatment induced changes between both groups.

RESULTS

At 4th and 12th weeks, 131 and 127 patients were available in both groups, respectively. Both groups showed significant LUTS improvement (IPSS changes: - 4.9 ± 2.7 and - 4.3 ± 2.9 at 4th week and - 6.1 ± 3 and - 5.4 ± 2.8 points by the 12th week in both groups, respectively). Group I had better average flow rates at both follow-up visits. Meanwhile, maximum flow rates were comparable in both groups at 12th week (13.5 ± 3.9vs. 12.6 ± 3.7, p > 0.05). In group I, all IIEF domains were significantly lowered at both visits (p < 0.05). Group II showed significant increase in IIEF-erectile function scores (1.3 ± 1.1 and 1.8 ± 1.2 at the 4th and 12th weeks) with a transient significant reduction of IIEF-orgasm and sexual desire noted only by the 4th week (- 0.8 ± 0.4 and - 0.6 ± 0.4, respectively).

CONCLUSION

Within three months, both combinations are comparably effective in improving BPH related LUTS. Tamsulosin/finasteride provided significantly better Qmax only at 4th week. Tadalafil/finasteride had the advantage of improving sexual performance over the other combination.

Underactive Bladder and Detrusor Underactivity: New Advances and Prospectives

Underactive bladder (UAB) is a prevalent but under-researched lower urinary tract symptom that typically occurs alongside detrusor underactivity (DU). Unlike UAB, DU is a urodynamic diagnosis which the International Continence Society (ICS) defines as "a contraction of reduced strength and/or duration, resulting in prolonged bladder emptying and/or a failure to achieve complete bladder emptying within a normal time span". Despite the widespread prevalence of UAB/DU, there are significant gaps in our understanding of its pathophysiological mechanisms, diagnosis, and treatment compared with overactive bladder (OAB) and detrusor overactivity (DO). These gaps are such that clinicians regard UAB/DU as an incurable condition. In recent years, the understanding of UAB has increased. The definition of UAB has been clarified, and the diagnostic criteria for DU have been considered more comprehensively. Meanwhile, a number of non-invasive diagnostic methods have also been reported. Clinical trials involving novel drugs, electrical stimulation, and stem cell therapy have shown promising results. Therefore, this review summarizes recent reports on UAB and DU and highlights the latest advances in their diagnosis and treatment.

Is tadalafil associated with decreased risk of major adverse cardiac events or venous thromboembolism in men with lower urinary tract symptoms?

Purpose

To evaluate the association of tadalafil, a phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitor (PDE5I), with major adverse cardiac events (MACE) or venous thromboembolism (VTE) in men with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS).

Methods

Data was obtained from the TriNetX Research Network, ICD-10 codes were used to identify men with LUTS, MACE, and VTE. In addition, demographic characteristics and use of tadalafil or alpha-blocker was evaluated. Then, unbalanced and balanced association analyses was performed to assess the relation between tadalafil and/or alpha-blocker use with MACE/VTE.

Results

After participant selection, analysis included 821,592 men that did not use an alpha blocker or tadalafil, 5,004 men that used tadalafil but no alpha blocker, 327,482 men that used an alpha blocker but no tadalafil, and 6,603 men that used both an alpha blocker and tadalafil. On balanced analysis, tadalafil was independently associated with a decreased risk of MACE/VTE within a 3-year time period (OR = 0.59, 95%CI 0.49–0.70, p < 0.0001). Among men with a history of alpha blocker use, tadalafil use was also independently associated with a decreased risk of MACE or VTE, both before and after controlling for potentially confounding variables (OR = 0.57, 95%CI: 0.50–0.66; p < 0.0001).

Conclusions

In our study, tadalafil was associated with a decreased risk of MACE/VTE in men with LUTS with and without a history of alpha blocker use. It is time to perform further long-term prospective randomized studies to further analyze the cardiovascular effects of PDE5Is as combination treatment with alpha blockers in the management of LUTS.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00345-022-04005-3.

Voiding Dysfunction in Old Male Rats Associated With Enlarged Prostate and Irregular Afferent-Triggered Reflex Responses

Purpose

This study was conducted to evaluate the hypothesis that an enlarged prostate in old rats may lead to complications associated with voiding dysfunction involving ionotropic P2X2/3-type purinergic receptors

Methods

Intact animals were divided into male young (MYR; 8–10 weeks old) and male old (MOR; 20 months old) rats. The animals underwent simultaneous detrusor electromyography (EMG) and suprapubic cystometry (CMG) under urethane anesthesia. Immunofluorescence techniques were used to evaluate prostatic autonomic innervation and P2X3R expression in bladder urothelial cells. The functional role of P2X3R was characterized by intramuscular application of AF-353, a selective P2X2/3R antagonist.

Results

The prostate index significantly increased in MOR, suggestive of an enlarged prostate affecting micturition patterns. Significant EMG and CMG differences were found between MYR and MOR. Higher immunoreactivity for P2X2/3R in the urothelial layer and for prostatic neurofilaments was seen in MOR. Systemic inhibition of P2X2/3R had minimal effects on MYR responsiveness, but improved voiding function in MOR with a marked decrease of intravesical pressure and bladder contractile responses.

Conclusions

The data support the hypothesis that an enlarged prostate in MOR may contribute to voiding dysfunction involving activation of P2X2/3R, which enhances a prostate-bladder reflex. This reflex may increase bladder afferent transmission and activation of increased prostate innervation, leading to voiding dysfunction.

Transaminase-mediated synthesis of enantiopure drug-like 1-(3′,4′-disubstituted phenyl)propan-2-amines

Transaminases (TAs) offer an environmentally and economically attractive method for the direct synthesis of pharmaceutically relevant disubstituted 1-phenylpropan-2-amine derivatives starting from prochiral ketones. In this work, we report the application of immobilised whole-cell biocatalysts with (R)-transaminase activity for the synthesis of novel disubstituted 1-phenylpropan-2-amines. After optimisation of the asymmetric synthesis, the (R)-enantiomers could be produced with 88–89% conversion and >99% ee, while the (S)-enantiomers could be selectively obtained as the unreacted fraction of the corresponding racemic amines in kinetic resolution with >48% conversion and >95% ee.

Immobilised whole-cell (R)-transaminases (TAs) enabled synthesis of either (R)- or (S)-enantiomers of drug-like amines from prochiral ketones or from racemic amines, respectively, in >95% ee.

The industrial revolution for the management of benign prostate obstruction: worldwide publication trends for surgical and medical therapies over the past two decades

INTRODUCTION

Research for management of benign prostate obstruction (BPO) for adult males remains a cornerstone of urology research. This landscape has witnessed the rise and fall of multiple therapies, both surgical and medical. Our aim was to formally evaluate the publication trends for these interventions over the past 20 years.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A systematic search was performed in a Cochrane style. Data was analysed using the independent t-test and Pearson's correlation coefficient (SPSS version 24). To observe changes in trends more effectively, data was sub-divided into two time periods: 1997 to 2006 and 2007 to 2016.

RESULTS

Over the past 20 years, 4236 papers have been published concerning for BPO (surgical, n = 2177 and medical, n = 2059). For surgical treatments, these included articles on monopolar transurethral resection of prostate (TURP) (n = 340), bipolar TURP (n = 260), HoLEP (n = 293) and Greenlight laser (n = 395). For medical therapies, these included alpha blockers (848), 5-alpha reductase inhibitors (n = 618) and PDE5I (n = 91). Between the two time periods the change was +18.8% (p = 0.108) for monopolar TURP, +497.1% (<0.001) for bipolar TURP, -54.5% (p <0.001 for prostatic stents and -81.9% (p <0.001) for transurethral microwave therapy (TUMT). There was over 290% rise in number of publications related to BPO laser surgery (p <0.001). For medical interventions, the change was +11.5% (p = 0.397) for alpha blockers, -1.9% (p = 0.867), +49.0%( 0.122) for phytotherapy, +2075% (p <0.001) for PDEI and +2375.0% (p <0.001) for combined alpha blocker and anti-muscarinics.

CONCLUSIONS

Interventions for BPO have undergone a high volume of research. In particular, minimally invasive laser surgeries and combined medical therapies have seen significant expansion.