Accuracy of a “Single Question Nocturia Score” compared to the “International Prostate Symptoms Score” in the evaluation of lower urinary tract symptoms in benign prostatic hyperplasia: A study performed at Ndola Teaching Hospital, Ndola, Zambia

The International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) is a useful tool approved by the World Health Organisation and the American Urological Association to measure the severity of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). Although commonly used in urological practice, the IPSS has faced many challenges in terms of its usage in developing countries. In our setting, most patients presenting with this condition are elderly patients with a low literacy level. Given this background, the IPSS could be time consuming and difficult to administer to such patients and it may lead to additional costs to the services. Objectives The objective of this study was to compare the accuracy of a Single Question Nocturia Score (SQNS) with the IPSS in evaluation of lower urinary tracts symptoms in men with Benign prostatic hyperplasia(BPH). Methods The study was designed as a cross-sectional study using researcher-administered IPSS and SQNS questionnaires. The sensitivity, specificity, and correlation coefficient were used to compare the results obtained. Sensitivity was defined as the ability of the SQNS to detect severe-to-moderate symptoms, whereas specificity was defined as the ability of the SQNS to detect mild-to-no symptoms. Results We recruited 162 patients with an age range between 50 and 88 years. The mean age was 66.7 (standard deviation ± 8.97 years). The IPSS showed that 85 patients (52%) presented with mild symptoms, and 77 patients (48%) presented with severe-to-moderate symptoms. In contrast, the SQNS showed that 88 patients (54.3%) presented with mild symptoms and 74 patients (46.7%) presented with severe-to-moderate symptoms. The sensitivity of the SQNS was 91%, and the specificity was 87%. The correlation coefficient of the SQNS to IPSS using Pearson correlation coefficient, was 0.74. This study showed that in our setting, the SQNS may be used as an alternative to the IPSS in assessing the severity of LUTS in men with BPH especially in a busy clinic.