Factors influencing practices for chronic prostatitis: a nationwide survey of urologists in South Korea.
BACKGROUND
We investigated the influence of physicians' attitudes on the treatment of chronic prostatitis, and attempted to correlate demographic and professional characteristics with patterns of therapy regarding chronic prostatitis.


METHODS
Probability samples were drawn from the Korean Urological Association Registry of Physicians, and a random sample of 850 Korean urologists were asked to complete a questionnaire which explored practice characteristics, attitudes, and diagnostic and treatment strategies for the management of chronic prostatitis. The returned questionnaires were statistically analysed.


RESULTS
Of the 850 questionnaires sent, 302 were returned, and 275 of those were included in the final analysis (response rate 32.4%). Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that the type of hospital (P < 0.001) and belief that culture tests helped diagnose chronic prostatitis (P = 0.001) were the most determinant factors with respect to the routine performance or non-performance of culture tests. Most Korean urologists (96.4%) prescribed antibiotics for the primary treatment of chronic prostatitis. Even when primary antibiotic treatment was unsuccessful, urologists frequently prescribed a second course of antibiotics (57.8%). In the multivariate model used, the likelihood of prescribing antibiotics as a secondary treatment varied by the type of hospital, with 0.4-fold odds (odds ratio [OR], 0.43; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.21-0.87; P = 0.019) of the practice occurring in university hospitals, as opposed to primary clinics. According to the same model, the belief that culture tests help to diagnose chronic prostatitis was also an independent influencing factor (OR, 2.29; 95% CI, 1.39-3.77; P = 0.001), whereas the actual performance of culture tests had no statistical significance.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggest that the personal beliefs and professional characteristics of physicians may influence the diagnosis and treatment of chronic prostatitis in Korea.
Ku
Ja Hyeon
JH
Department of Urology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Paick
Jae-Seung
JS
Kim
Soo Woong
SW
D000317:Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001494:Baths; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003470:Culture Media; D004363:Drug Utilization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006769:Hospitals, General; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea; D008297:Male; D008405:Massage; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011467:Prostate / Q000382:microbiology; D011472:Prostatitis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
D000317:Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal; D003470:Culture Media