[Investigation of sexual dysfunction among chronic prostatitis patients in high altitude area].

Objective: To investigate the prevalence and characteristics of sexual dysfunction in patients with chronic prostatitis (CP) in the high altitude area.
Methods: A total of 637 CP patients randomly recruited from different urologic clinics were divided into 4 groups according to their living altitudes. The subjects were scored on the National Institute of the Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (NIH-CPSI), the International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5), the Chinese Index of Sexual Function for Premature Ejaculation (C-ISFPE) and the questionnaire on ejaculatory difficulties from the University of Washington Symptom Score.
Results: In the 637 CP patients, the overall incidences of premature ejaculation (PE), erectile dysfunction (ED) and difficult ejaculation (DE) were 28.4%, 17.6% and 23.9%, respectively, 9.9% with PE, ED and DE simultaneously. With the increase of the living altitude, the scores on IIEF-5 (P = 0.032) and C-ISFPE (P = 0. 047) were obviously decreased, and the incidences of PE (P = 0.047), ED (P = 0.046) and DE (P = 0.019) markedly elevated. Those with PE or ED experienced worse symptoms at a higher altitude (r = 0.249 or 0.267, P < 0.05). The differences were all statistically significant.
Conclusion: The prevalence and severity of sexual dysfunction are positively correlated with the living altitude among CP patients.