title: The measurement of the prostatic resistive index is a reliable ultrasonographic tool to stratify symptoms of patients with benign prosthatic hyperplasia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the correlation between lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and the resistive index (RI) of the transitional (TZ) and peripheral zone (PZ) of the prostate and to assess the impact of alpha blocker (AB) treatment on RI changes.
  
  
  METHODS
  TZ-RI and PZ-RI values of 60 patients with LUTS were calculated by using transrectal ultrasound (TRUS). Correlations between the severity of LUTS and RI values were established. Then, AB was given to moderately and severe symptomatic patients with LUTS. One month after AB usage, TRUS was applied to assess the impact of AB on the TZ-RI, PZ-RI and the international prostate symptom score (IPSS).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Participants were divided into 3 groups as mild (n=14), moderate (n=25) and severe symptomatic (n=21) patients. Mean TZ-RI and PZ-RI were statistically different between the three groups (p<0.01). TZ-RI and PZ-RI were correlated with the severity of LUTS (r=0.757, p<0.01 and r=0.699, p<0.01 respectively). A decrease in symptom severity and RI values in moderate and severe symptomatic groups were significant after AB treatment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  TZ-RI and PZ-RI values can reflect the severity of LUTS and the AB treatment decreases the TZ-RI and the PZ-RI. Measuring the RI of the prostate by TRUS can be a useful tool to stratify LUTS's severity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Haydarpasa Numune Education and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey. e.yenclek@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Esin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Yencilek
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Yeditepe University Medical Faculty,Istanbul,Turkey.
authors.forename: Hakan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Koyuncu
authors.affiliation: Haydarpasa Numune Education and Research Hospital,Istanbul,Turkey.
authors.forename: Deniz
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Arslan
authors.affiliation: Beykoz State Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Yavuz
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bastug
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011467:Prostate / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D011470:Prostatic Hyperplasia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D012039:Regional Blood Flow; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D014463:Ultrasonography