This insidious disease is one of the most common ailments in the male half of humanity. Many close their eyes to the emerging malaise and wait for the inevitable development of all kinds of consequences that make normal life impossible. We will inform you about the symptoms of prostatitis in men and its treatment.
Prostatitis is an inflammation of the prostate gland that, according to statistics, affects a large number of men of any age. Already in their thirties, one in three suffers from this disease, over the years the number of patients is inexorably increasing, and almost everyone who has changed from sixty faces one form or another of the disorder. And these are just official data, but in fact the incidence rate is much higher, but due to men's reluctance to go to the doctor, doctors simply cannot give exact numbers.
From early childhood, children are taught that a real man must be persistent, endure pain and pay no attention to ailments. And it is not about going to the doctor at the slightest discomfort. This rule is strictly followed by most adult men who discuss their problems with doctors in the most extreme case and sometimes even in an ambulance or hospital.
Unfortunately, this also applies to prostatitis. The first alarming "bells" like the frequent need to go to the bathroom, sometimes slight aches and pains when urinating, some problems with libido and potency, are explained by anything: a hard work day, a scandal with the boss, a party too stormy the day before.
And the main thing: there is nothing to think about, everything will pass by itself. There is a part of logic in this: the first signs of prostatitis in men are slightly expressed, cause the patient a minimum of discomfort and soon disappear. Only one thing is not taken into account: the painful symptoms have passed, but the disease itself has not disappeared. It just turns into a chronic form, which for a long time does not manifest itself in any way, and then, under the influence of negative factors, it worsens and causes much more suffering.
Even if emerging health problems seem worthless to you and will soon disappear without any treatment, know that they can be harbingers of serious illness. Be sure to see a doctor, go through the necessary examination and tests. Remember that any disease is easier and faster to cure if you do it urgently.
Causes of the disease
Prostatitis can be caused by a wide variety of factors that often have nothing to do with the reproductive system. This is one of the most insidious properties of the disease.
We are going to list the reasons that lead to inflammation of the gland most often:
- Pathogenic microorganisms are one of the main causes of disease. Initially, a person can get sick with any infectious disease: from infectious inflammation of the urinary tract, sexually transmitted diseases, and ending with tonsillitis, sinusitis, bronchitis or hemorrhoids, which are unexpected in this case. Even untreated tooth decay can cause prostate problems later in life. From the most distant parts of the body from the prostate gland, pathogens enter with the flow of blood, lymph, and other biological fluids. Add to this a weakened immune system in almost everyone, because with normal immunity, a common cold is unlikely to involve inflammation of one of the organs of the reproductive system.
- Circulatory disorders in the small pelvis: This reason is second on the list. Stagnation of blood, disruption of the normal blood supply and, consequently, hypoxia of organs occurs due to physical inactivity, constantly sitting at work and at home. This leads to a significant increase in the size of the prostate. Similar changes are seen in overweight people.
- Frequent jerking and straining of the perineum muscles - People in some professions are prone to this, for example drivers.
- Hormonal imbalance: It occurs in many diseases and has a very negative effect on the health of the prostate.
- Hypothermia.
- Frequent constipation.
To reduce the likelihood of illness, it is necessary to monitor the regularity of sexual activity. Don't forget that both prolonged abstinence and excessively frequent intimate contact have a negative impact.
Which forms of the disease are isolated
- Bacterial prostatitis: caused by pathogenic bacteria. It can be acute (more common in young people) and chronic. Recent studies have shown that, as a rule, the infection affects the already pathologically altered tissues of the gland, with serious circulatory disorders.
- Non-bacterial or abacterial prostatitis: Although laboratory tests do not show the presence of pathogenic microorganisms in the diseased organ, their participation in the process cannot be completely ruled out.
- Prostatodynia- All symptoms of prostatitis are present, but inflammation of the gland is not detected.
How prostatitis manifests itself
To detect the disease early, you need to know what the symptoms of prostatitis are in men. The most characteristic features are the acute form of the disease.
- Weakness and general malaise.
- Chills and fever.
- Increase in body temperature.
- Headache.
- Severe pain in the perineum and groin area, aggravated by urination and defecation.
- The need to go to the bathroom frequently, and shortly after urinating, the patient feels the need again, because the bladder has not been completely emptied.
- Serious conditions requiring urgent medical attention are expressed in acute urinary retention.
- Nervous tension, irritability.
Chronic prostatitis symptoms
In its chronic form, the disease can be asymptomatic for many years and its symptoms can easily be confused with the manifestations of other diseases.
Let's see how this ailment manifests itself:
- Drawing pains in the pelvis and lower back: The pain comes from the perineal region and is felt in the lower abdomen, urethra and testicles. In addition, the patient feels lower back pain radiating to the leg, which can often be mistaken for sciatica or other neuralgia. The pain may be concentrated in one place or it may seem like it hurts all together.
- Difficulty and frequent urination- Pain usually occurs when the patient starts or stops urinating. At the same time, it is impossible to hold and retain urine: despite the fact that the man recently went to the toilet, the sensations are as if the bladder is full to capacity. When you urinate in a weak stream, very little urine is released.
- Decreased sexual activity- a long-lasting inflammatory process, circulatory disorders, pathological changes in the prostate tissue cannot be wasted and ultimately lead to a marked decrease in libido andthe power. This is because the nerves run through the gland, transmitting impulses to the centers in the brain responsible for erection. One of the consequences of the disease is the damage of these nerves, the decrease in their sensitivity and the development of disorders in the intimate sphere. At first, the erection does not lose its strength, but at the same time, premature ejaculation is observed, then the erection itself becomes much weaker, and the orgasm becomes slow. The synthesis of testosterone is gradually inhibited and the sexual desire is catastrophically reduced. In some cases, when ejaculating, a man feels a sharp pain at the head of the penis.
- Scarring of the prostate tissue and reduction in the size of the organ.In advanced cases, this process spreads to the urinary tract and bladder, causing severe urinary disorders. All this leads to the development of kidney dysfunction, the development of urolithiasis and other serious conditions.
Treatment of various forms of the disease
We have looked at the most common symptoms of prostate inflammation in men, now let's look at ways to treat this disease.
Although there are many studies dedicated to the treatment of prostatitis, to date, the general scheme of therapy is unknown. Treatment may differ in each specific case, but there is no doubt that it is of great importance to correctly determine the cause of the disease and start therapy in the early stages of the development of the pathology.
In acute prostatitis of bacterial genesis, the patient must be hospitalized, receive antibiotic therapy, prescribe anti-inflammatory drugs, analgesics, drugs that normalize blood circulation.
The chronic form of the disease is very difficult to treat and is usually not completely cured. In the case of successful treatment, a long period of remission is achieved, during which the signs of prostatitis in men and its symptoms do not appear.
The complex of therapeutic procedures is selected individually for each patient. The patient is prescribed non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, drugs that improve blood circulation in the prostate, immunomodulatory drugs, vitamins. In addition, a man must undergo a course of physiotherapy, prostate massage and regularly perform physical exercises aimed at maintaining the health of the prostate gland.