Nocturia Is a Predictive Factor of Mortality

MONDAY, Jan. 31 (HealthDay News) -- Nocturia is a strong predictive factor of mortality in men and women younger than 65, with a dose-response pattern of increased mortality risk with increasing number of nightly voiding episodes, according to a study in the February issue of The Journal of Urology.

Varant Kupelian, Ph.D., from the New England Research Institutes in Watertown, Mass., and colleagues studied nocturia, defined as two or more voiding episodes per night, in 15,988 men and women, aged 20 and older between 1988 and 1994. Using mortality data from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) and the National Death Index, the researchers determined the association between nocturia and mortality risk. The researchers found that the prevalence of nocturia was 15.5 percent in men and 20.9 percent in women. Analyses showed a statistically significant trend of increased mortality risk as the number of voiding episodes increased in both men and women. They also found that the degree of association between nocturia and mortality was greater in those subjects younger than 65, with attenuated associations in those subjects aged 65 and older. Potential underlying mechanisms of the association between nocturia and increased risk of mortality included factors such as sleep disruption and the subsequent development of related comorbidities. "Data from the NHANES III, a nationally representative sample, indicate that nocturia is a predictor of mortality in men and women after accounting for major confounding factors," the authors write. The study was supported by a grant from Ferring Pharmaceuticals. Several of the study authors disclosed financial relationships with several pharmaceutical companies, including Ferring and Endo Pharmaceuticals. 

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