1981 Volume 72 Issue 1 Pages 74-78
An attempt was made to clarify the regional difference of the morbidity of bladder tumor in Nagano Prefecture.
Clinical records of all patients with primary bladder tumor first diagnosed during the 5 year's period from 1974 to 1978 were obtained from 12 big hospitals located in Nagano Prefecture. Excluding bladder tumor associated with renal pelvic or ureteral tumor and that of non-urothelial origin, 432 cases (330 males and 102 females) were ascertaind.
On the assumption that nearly all patients with bladder tumor in Nagano Prefecture are seen or referred to one of the 12 hospitals, because other medical facilities have few urologists and because geographical circumstance prevents the patients from visiting hospitals outside the Prefecture, approximate morbidity rates related to the age, sex and place of residence were calculated using the results of the census in 1975.
The average annual morbidity of bladder tumor was 6.8 per 100, 000 in male and 2.0 in female (male-female ratio 3.5:1). Limited to the age over 30, it was 12.3 in male and 3.4 in female.
The age related morbidity increased with age in an exponential fashion.
As for regional difference of morbidity, a comparison was made between the urban and rural areas, and among the 10 districts of Nagano Prefecture, each of which has a different climatic and socioeconomic background. There was no significant difference in the morbidity between the urban and rural areas in either sex. In male, a morbidity significantly higher than the average was found in Taihoku district (10.5) and a significantly lower one in Hokushin district (3.8). On the other hand, the morbidity in female showed no significant difference among the 10 districts.
