Measurement of Prostate Gland: A Descriptive Study Among Asymptomatic Male Students in a Private University in Malaysia

Transabdominal ultrasound scan is one of the appropriate methods to measure the size of prostate gland. Enlarged prostate is a precursor to prostate cancer and hence, it is more of a concern when enlarged prostate occurs in young men. This study has been conducted to determine the actual size of prostate gland among asymptomatic male students in Malaysia and compare the volume of prostate gland among different age groups. A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among 101 male students aged between 18 to 26 years old in a private institution in Nilai, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. The respondents were randomly recruited using convenience sampling method. A validated self-administered questionnaire covering socio-demographic data was used. Respondents need to undergo a transabdominal ultrasound scanning by an expert in the measurement of prostate volume. Majority of the respondents were aged between 18 to 20 years old (55%) and were Malays (88%). A total of 92% of the respondents did not have any family history related to prostate cancer. The average size of prostate glands was found to be normal in size with 21.1 (±3.9) cc. Prostate dimension for students aged 18–20 years old was significantly smaller compared to respondent aged 24–26 years old (p = 0.01). It is concluded that, the asymptomatic male students in this study has normal size of prostate gland.