Objective: To evaluate the effect of combined application of Semen vaccariae seeds auricular acupressure and 5α-reductase inhibitor (finasteride tablets) on postoperative quality of life of patients after transurethral plasmakinetic enucleation of the prostate (PKEP).
Methods: 120 patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) who were scheduled to undergo PKEP at the Department of Urology, Jintan People's Hospital Affiliated to Jiangsu University from January 2020 to December 2022, were randomly divided into 4 groups after voluntarily signing informed consent. Three days before the operation, 30 patients were given oryzanol tablets 5 mg orally once a night (placebo group), 31 patients were given Semen vaccariae seeds auricular acupressure (auricular acupressure group), 29 patients were given finasteride 5 mg orally once a night (finasteride group), and another 30 patients were given auricular acupressure combined with finasteride 5 mg orally once a night (combination therapy group). The above treatment was continued for 6 weeks after PKEP. The general data of the perioperative period and the 6-week postoperative follow-up results of the 4 groups were compared to observe the indicators such as the symptom score of nocturia, the self-rating depression scale, and the quality of life (QoL) after treatment among the groups.
Results: All patients who underwent PKEP completed the 6-week postoperative follow-up and no statistical difference in the relevant data of the 4 groups was found before the operation. After 2 and 4 weeks of follow-up, the nocturia symptom scores of the auricular acupressure group and the combination therapy group were better than those of the placebo group and the finasteride group. The depression symptom scores and QoL results showed that the auricular acupressure group, finasteride group, and combination therapy group were superior to the placebo group (P<0.05). After 6 weeks of follow-up, QoL in the combination therapy group was 1.65±0.55, which was significantly different from that in the other three groups (P<0.05).
Conclusion: Combined application of auricular acupressure and 5α-reductase inhibitor can significantly alleviate symptoms such as nocturia and depression and improve the quality of life in BPH patients after PKEP.
Keywords: benign prostatic hyperplasia; transurethral plasmakinetic enucleation of the prostate; auricular acupressure; 5α-reductase inhibitor; quality of life.