title: Prostate-specific antigen and prostate volume in Korean men with spinal cord injury: a case-control study.
abstract: METHODS
  Prospective, cross-sectional, case-control study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Outpatient department in Seoul, Korea.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess prostate volume and serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels in Korean men with spinal cord injury (SCI).
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 31 SCI patients with ages ranging between 45 and 81 years old (median age, 58 years) were studied. Thirty-one age-matched individuals without SCI were enrolled in the study as controls. We tested PSA levels and performed transrectal ultrasonographies on all enrolled patients. Of the patients with SCI, 20 were evaluated for testosterone, luteinizing hormone (LH), and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Serum PSA levels and prostate volume parameters in the two groups had similar values: the median (5th-95th percentiles) serum PSA level was 1.56 ng/ml (0.12-9.77) for SCI patients and 1.04 ng/ml (0.50-2.98) for controls (P=0.481), whereas the median (5th-95th percentiles) prostate volume was 18.33 ml (10.16-76.78) for SCI patients and 20.80 ml (14.23-41.22) for controls (P=0.072). No significant differences were found when serum PSA levels and prostate volumes were compared according to SCI patient injury characteristics. Testosterone levels were lower than the normal range in 7 SCI patients (35%), LH was higher than the normal range in 10 SCI patients (20%), and FSH was higher than the normal range in eight SCI patients (40%). We observed an age-related increase in FSH levels (r=0.634, P=0.004), although hormone levels did not correlate with serum PSA levels and prostate volume parameters.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  According to our results, serum PSA levels and prostate volume in Korean SCI patients are not different from those in uninjured men and are not affected by injury characteristics.
authors: Department of Urology, Seoul Veterans Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
authors: H B
authors: HB
authors: Shim
authors: Y D
authors: YD
authors: Kim
authors: T Y
authors: TY
authors: Jung
authors: J K
authors: JK
authors: Lee
authors: J H
authors: JH
authors: Ku
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D044466:Asian People; D001341:Autonomic Nervous System / Q000503:physiopathology; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006062:Gonadotropins / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009929:Organ Size; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011467:Prostate / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000294:innervation / Q000378:metabolism; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism; D014463:Ultrasonography
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D006062:Gonadotropins; D013739:Testosterone; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen