To evaluate prostate size and serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels in male patients with spinal cord injury (SCI). As a result of improved medical care, the life expectancy in patients with SCI today equals the life expectancy of the general population. Therefore, male patients with SCI are likely to develop benign prostatic hyperplasia or prostate cancer. Although animal experiments indicate that neurogenic factors play an important role in prostate growth, the influence of these factors is not well examined in humans.

The data of 100 male patients with SCI and 575 noninjured men were evaluated. The inclusion criteria were age older than 35 years and SCI for longer than 2 years. The exclusion criteria were previous prostate surgery, acute urinary tract infection, and bladder or prostate cancer. PSA was measured by an immunoenzymatic assay, and the prostatic volume was assessed by transrectal ultrasonography. For analysis, patients were grouped according to age.

With increasing age, the mean prostate volume increased in the patients with SCI and in the control group. The mean PSA level increased with age in the control group and to a far lesser extent in the patients with SCI. Neither for the entire cohort nor for the subgroups delineated by age were the differences in mean PSA level and mean prostate volume between patients with SCI and the control group statistically significant.

Prostate growth is detectable in patients with SCI. Although there is a tendency toward a lower prostate volume and lower serum PSA level in patients with SCI, the differences were not statistically significant. According to our results, the reference ranges for PSA levels are not vastly different from the general reference ranges.