Benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) is one of the most common diseases in men of middle and advanced ages. For this reason, the discovery of etiopathogenesis and associated risk factors is important for diagnosis and treatment of BPH. Recent studies have emphasized the importance of hereditary and genetic factors as etiological factors. The detection of hereditary BPH suggested an existence of a gene in the pathogenesis of the disease. For this purpose, the relationship between BPH and the polymorphisms of androgen receptor gene, vitamin D receptor gene, α1a-adrenoreceptor gene and the polymorphisms of the genes which are responsible in androgen metabolism has been investigated by many studies and contradictory results have been obtained. More studies are needed in different populations to clarify the information.
Keywords: Benign prostate hyperplasia, heredity, polymorphism, pathogenesis