Combination therapy with curcumin plus tamsulosin and finasteride in the treatment of men with benign prostatic hyperplasia: a single center, randomized control study

Jing Qiao; Yu Gan; Yuchen Gong; Qingtian Song; Bo Zhang; Bingsheng Li; Feng Ru; Yang Li; Yao He

doi:10.21037/tau-21-567

Combination therapy with curcumin plus tamsulosin and finasteride in the treatment of men with benign prostatic hyperplasia: a single center, randomized control study

Transl Androl Urol. 2021 Aug;10(8):3432-3439. doi: 10.21037/tau-21-567.

Authors

Jing Qiao¹, Yu Gan², Yuchen Gong², Qingtian Song², Bo Zhang², Bingsheng Li², Feng Ru², Yang Li², Yao He²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Ophthalmology, Hunan Children's Hospital, Changsha, China.
² Department of Urology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.

Abstract

Background: To perform a prospective, randomized, single center study to investigate the efficacy of combined use of curcumin, an anti-inflammatory agent, with the best standard management (BSM, tamsulosin and finasteride) in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) patients.

Methods: One hundred and twenty-two consecutive patients were randomized to receive tamsulosin 0.2 mg, finasteride 5 mg, and curcumin 2,250 mg once a day (curcumin + BSM group, n=61) versus tamsulosin 0.2 mg, finasteride 5 mg, and placebo (BSM group, n=61) for 6 months. The safety of treatments and their efficacy on improving waist circumference (WC), periprostatic fat thickness (PPFT), lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), and sexual function were assessed at baseline and month 6.

Results: One hundred and sixteen patients completed the whole procedure (116/122, 95.1%). There were significant improvements in prostate volume (PV), maximum flow rate (Qmax), the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), IPSS-voiding subscore (IPSS-V), IPSS-storage subscore (IPSS-S), and quality of life (QoL) from baseline after treatment in both groups. Additionally, both WC and PPFT decreased significantly after treatments than those at baseline in the curcumin + BSM group. Also, WC and PPFT in the curcumin + BSM group were significantly lower than those in the BSM group. In addition, IPSS-S, QoL score, and the 5-item version of the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) in the curcumin + BSM group improved significantly compared with those in the BSM group.

Conclusions: We conclude that curcumin combined with tamsulosin and finasteride has more beneficial effects in reducing PPFT, protecting erectile function, improving urinary retention symptoms, and QoL scores in BPH patients compared to tamsulosin and finasteride alone.

Trial registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry ChiCTR2100043800.

Keywords: Curcumin; benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH); lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS); periprostatic fat thickness (PPFT).