Nighttime urination can raise death risk

CHICAGO, April 28 (UPI) -- The need to urinate two or more times each night increased the risk of death in elderly men, a study in Japan found.

The researchers found that Japanese men with nocturia -- excessive nighttime urination -- had a greater risk of death than Japanese men living in similar assisted-living facilities who did not have nocturia.

The geriatric assessment of 788 residents -- all 70 or older -- considered age, sex, weight, diabetes, hypertension, history of coronary heart disease, nephropathy, alcohol consumption and the use of tranquilizers, hypnotics or diuretics.

Dr. Anthony Smith, spokesman for the American Urological Association, suggests physicians need to be vigilant about finding the underlying causes of nighttime urination

"Nighttime urination is not necessarily just a matter of getting older. Patients should talk to their doctor about what may be causing this," Smith said in a statement. "There may be a very serious yet treatable condition involved."

The study findings are being presented at the annual scientific meeting of the American Urological Association in Chicago.