(213) Assessing Primary Care Physicians Awareness of 5-Alpha Reductase Inhibitors for Men with Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Primary care physicians (PCPs) commonly prescribe 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors (5-ARIs) for the management of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). 5-ARIs can affect prostate-specific antigen (PSA) kinetics by decreasing PSA levels by approximately half, and therefore delay the early detection of prostate cancer (PCa). Objective To determine PCPs’ level of awareness and indications for urology referral in patients treated with 5-ARIs. Methods After IRB approval, an anonymous survey was emailed to affiliated PCPs at an academic urban institution. Questions focused on residency graduation year, patient volume, knowledge of 5-ARIs and their effects on PSA, role of 5-ARIs in PCa prevention, and indications for prostate biopsy referral. PCPs were stratified by residency graduation year before or after 2010, or medical specialty of Family Medicine or Internal Medicine. Survey responses were summarized with descriptive statistics and responses between groups (residency graduation year or medical specialty) were compared using Chi-squared test. Results A total of 182 PCPs were emailed, of which 30 responded (16.5% response rate). Thirteen PCPs (43.3%) graduated residency before 2010 and 17 (56.7%) after 2010. Sixteen PCPs (53.3%) were Family Medicine physicians and 14 (46.7%) were Internists. The majority of PCPs reported that every 6 months, they saw at least one patient with BPH (96.7%), ordered at least one PSA test (86.7%), and referred at least one patient for a prostate biopsy (56.7%). Forty percent of PCPs were not aware of the suppressive effects of 5-ARIs on PSA, 70.0% would not refer a patient for a prostate biopsy who is taking 5-ARIs and has an elevated corrected PSA, 70.0% were not sure or thought that 5-ARIs may decrease the risk of high-grade PCa, and 43.3% were not sure or thought that 5-ARIs are approved for the prevention of PCa. There were no significant differences in the knowledge of 5-ARIs and their effects on PSA, role of 5-ARIs in PCa prevention, or indications for prostate biopsy referral between PCPs who graduated residency before 2010 and after 2010, or between PCPs who were Family Medicine physicians and Internists (p>0.05 for all). Conclusions There is a general lack of awareness amongst PCPs on the knowledge of 5-ARIs and indications for biopsy referral in patients treated with 5-ARIs. An educational opportunity exists to optimize usage of 5-ARIs and avoid delaying PCa detection. Disclosure No.