A cross‑sectional study conducted in Ethiopia between August and October 2024 evaluated 232 men diagnosed with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and found that routine blood‑count‑derived inflammation indices could help identify patients at higher risk of severe urinary symptoms.
The investigators recorded clinical, lifestyle and laboratory data, noting that 84 participants (more than one‑third) experienced severe symptoms. By analysing several immune‑inflammation indices, the team aimed to pinpoint which markers most reliably predicted symptom burden, potentially offering a low‑cost, non‑invasive tool for clinicians.
How Age and Lifestyle Shape Symptom Risk
Men aged 65 years or older were more than twice as likely to report severe BPH symptoms. Low physical activity levels and central obesity also emerged as significant risk factors.
Inflammatory markers added further predictive power. Elevated Systemic Immune‑Inflammation Index (SII), Pan‑Immune‑Inflammation Index (PII) and Neutrophil‑to‑Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) each nearly tripled the odds of severe symptoms.
Among all indices, SII showed the strongest performance, achieving an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.736. An SII value above 564.92 × 10³ identified severe cases with 69 % sensitivity and 72 % specificity. PII performed similarly, while NLR was slightly less accurate. Platelet‑to‑Lymphocyte Ratio (PLR) and Lymphocyte‑to‑Monocyte Ratio (LMR) provided limited predictive value, with LMR performing poorly.
Statistical tests confirmed that SII outperformed both NLR and PLR, though its accuracy was comparable to PII. A LOESS curve analysis revealed a clear, nonlinear rise in the probability of severe symptoms as SII levels increased, underscoring the link between systemic inflammation and BPH severity.
SII and PII Show the Strongest Predictive Performance as Inflammation Markers
The authors concluded that both SII and PII—simple, inexpensive measures obtainable from routine blood counts—could serve as accessible, non‑invasive tools to support clinical decision‑making for BPH. They called for further research to validate these findings and to explore how inflammatory markers might guide personalized treatment strategies.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the primary objective of the Ethiopian BPH study?
The study aimed to determine whether routine blood‑test‑derived immune‑inflammation indices could predict the severity of urinary symptoms in men with BPH.
Which blood‑based index demonstrated the highest predictive accuracy for severe BPH symptoms?
The Systemic Immune‑Inflammation Index (SII) showed the highest accuracy, with an AUC of 0.736 and a cutoff value of 564.92 × 10³ yielding 69 % sensitivity and 72 % specificity.
Besides inflammatory markers, what other factors were linked to a higher risk of severe BPH symptoms?
Men aged 65 years or older, those with low levels of physical activity, and individuals with central obesity were significantly more likely to experience severe symptoms.
How might incorporating simple blood‑test‑derived inflammation scores reshape the management of BPH in everyday clinical practice?
