Prostatitis - inflammation of the prostate gland - can manifest itself in acute and chronic forms.
It is difficult to ignore acute inflammation: its signs are clearly pronounced, which cannot be said about the chronic manifestation of the disease.Thatasymptomatic, but it does its job “with excellence”, damaging the organ’s tissues, reducing its functions.
About chronic prostatitis: types and characteristics
Prostate inflammation is considered chronic,if your indolent symptoms persist for more than 3 months.
According to statistics, only 5% of cases are acute, the remaining 95% are chronic prostatitis.It affects men of reproductive age and even young men aged 18 to 20 are susceptible to this disease.
There can be two reasons for the development of chronic prostatitis: infection and blood stagnation in the pelvis.
Infectionenters the prostate in various ways:
- with blood flow from infectious foci in the body - decayed teeth, pneumonia, inflamed maxillary sinuses, pustular formations,
- with lymphatic outflow from nearby organs, for example, from the intestines with hemorrhoids, dysbiosis,
- sexually
- running down or up the infected urinary tract - bladder or urethra.
Prostate inflammation caused by a sexually transmitted pathogen such as gonococcus, chlamydia, and treponema pallidum requires special attention.The symptoms of these prostatitis and genital infections are similar to each other and can “hide” behind the signs of these diseases.This type of prostatitis is easy to trigger.
Reduced immunity and hormonal imbalancesespecially stimulate the development and spread of infection.
Non-infectious or congestive prostatitisappears as a result of a violation of the outflow of blood and lymph from the pelvis, as well as stagnation of prostate juice in the ducts of the gland.
Provoke such phenomenathe following factors:
- disturbances in sexual life - prolonged abstinence, interrupted acts, unfulfilled desire,
- smoking - nicotine causes blood vessel spasms and interferes with normal blood circulation,
- sedentary lifestyle,
- tight clothes,
- alcohol abuse.Alcoholic beverages irritate the walls of gland ducts, causing inflammation,
- constipation
Congestive prostatitis occurs 8 times more often than infectious prostatitis and very rarely develops as a complication of acute prostate inflammation.
Bacterial prostatitis
This type of disease is also calledchronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS).The main symptom is pain in the pelvic region, but the absence of pathogenic microorganisms in the microbiological examination of urine and prostate secretions.
Painful sensations acquire different severity and localization.They spread to the perineum or bladder, genitals.The ejaculation process is also painful.Problems in urinary excretion and in the sexual sphere are also present, but are secondary.
The diagnosis is made if the pain persists for 3 months or more.
There are 2 types of CPPS:
- Inflammatory CPPS– an increase in the number of leukocytes is detected in urine and prostate secretions, which indicates inflammation.Microorganisms are not detected.There are several reasons for this type of inflammation to appear.On the one hand, this is possible with the reflux (reflux) of clean urine from the urethra into the gland.This is facilitated by anatomical defects or impaired muscle contractions of the bladder, prostate and perineum.Urine, or rather the urates contained in it, cause inflammation of the prostate gland.On the other hand, it is believed that the culprits of this process are still bacteria that are not determined by the classical method.To identify them, molecular diagnosis must be used.The third reason is autoimmune processes in the body.
- Non-inflammatory CPPS– the analyzes do not contain leukocytosis and microorganisms.To establish a diagnosis, instrumental diagnostics are used.Allows you to identify innervation problems or muscular changes in the prostate and other organs:
- cervical part of the bladder - stenosis or proliferation,
- pelvic area – myalgia, muscle tension, interruption of the passage of nerve impulses,
- urethra - narrowing, increased pressure,
- prostate – urine reflux, increased pressure.
OftenNerve disorders are observed in patients with CPPS: anxiety, irritability, depressive tendencies.
Bacterial prostatitis
Chronic prostate inflammation of bacterial etiologybegins to manifest itself with mild discomfort when urinating.This includes mild pain, itching or burning, and decreased jet flow.The color of the urine changes and acquires an unpleasant odor.Unpleasant sensations can also disturb you during bowel movements.A dull dull pain appears in the perineum.
to emergeproblems in sex life.At the beginning of the disease, they are situational: weakening of the erection or an increase in the frequency of its occurrence at night, acceleration of ejaculation, disturbances in orgasmic sensations.
A characteristic symptom of this phase– the appearance of discharge from the urethra during defecation.
These sluggish symptoms can persist for a long time.A man may not pay attention to them, attributing everything to other reasons.If there is no treatment, they progress and an exacerbation of the chronic process occurs, the intensity of sensations increases.
Urination becomes extremely painful, the urge to go to the bathroom becomes more frequent.At a certain point, these manifestations weaken due to the compensatory growth of the bladder muscles, and then they begin again, with greater force.
The pain in the perineum also intensifies.It radiates to the lower back, pubis, leg, scrotum.The nature of the pain also changes: it becomes stronger and more acute and is uncomfortable at night.
Sexual dysfunction increases and becomes permanent.Ejaculation is accompanied by pain, decreased erection and libido.
Patients are also accompanied by increased sweating, including in the perineum.Body temperature is slightly elevated – 37-37.5°.
In the context of sexual disorders in menmental disorders develop.They become irritable, nervous and may become depressed.
Treating the disease at this stage reduces the intensity of symptoms and the exacerbation phase goes into remission.
Other types of chronic prostatitis
There is a conceptcalculous prostatitis.This disease is extremely rare and affects older men.It is characterized by the formation of stones made up of prostatic juice, inflammatory effusion, as well as phosphates and calcium.
The signs of this type of disease are pain, which is typical in prostatitis.They intensify with movement, after sexual intercourse.Blood appears in the ejaculate.There are other signs of gland inflammation.
Stones are a consequence of long-standing prostatitis or adenoma.
Congestive prostatitisThere are bacterial and non-bacterial.Its peculiarity is mild symptoms:
- low fever,
- uncomfortable sensations in the groin,
- problems with urination,
- irritability,
- sexual disorders.
There are also suchtypes of chronic prostatitis:
- autoimmune– develops in immunological diseases, for example, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus,
- hormonal-dystrophic– arises due to hormonal imbalances, with hormonal diseases (diabetes mellitus), as a result of physiological aging of the body,
- vegetovascular– formed against the background of vegetative-vascular dystonia.It causes blood circulation problems.
How the disease is detected: diagnosis
Chronic prostatitis is diagnosedthe same methods as acute.
First of allthe doctor interviews and examines the patient.The examination is carried out through a rectal examination of the prostate.It may be enlarged, painful, asymmetrical and hardened.In rare cases (non-inflammatory CPPS) it is not changed.
Next doctorwill request tests.Laboratory methods include general blood and urine tests and analysis of prostate secretions.They will show an increase in white blood cell count.Bacteriological examination of urine and prostate juice reveals the pathogen.Sometimes these indicators may be normal, but the process is still present.
To confirm the fact of the disease, the blood is tested for PSA.Instrumental methods will also help: ultrasound, TRUS, uroflowmetry.
It often happens that a man does not suspect that he has this disease, ignoring the symptoms.It is detected by chance, during systematic examinations.Therefore, it is recommended not to disturb the system and not to neglect scheduled inspections.
Pharmacological treatment
Firstly, for the treatment of chronic prostatitisantibiotics are prescribed.The course is long - 1-1.5 months.Before prescribing antibacterial agents, the type of pathogen and its sensitivity to drugs are determined.
Mandatoryuse immunocorrective medications, because reduced immunity is a common cause of inflammation.Help from an immunologist is possible.
Therapy for chronic prostate inflammationI can't do without anti-inflammatory medications.To begin with, non-steroidal medications are prescribed.They are used in the form of tablets or injections.If they cannot achieve the desired result, hormones are used.
Alpha blockerswill help relieve muscle tension in the bladder and perineum.They act symptomatically, reducing pain and improving urination.
If unbearable pain occurs,analgesics are relevant.
Worth mentioning separatelyon the use of a pharmaceutical form such as suppositories.They are perfect for treating chronic prostatic processes.Most of the time, your symptoms are mild and the gentle action of the suppositories is enough to alleviate them.
They are inserted into the rectum.Its location close to the prostate allows results to be obtained quickly and effectively.In addition, the harmful effects of tablets on the gastrointestinal tract and difficulties with injections are eliminated.Suppositories have an anti-inflammatory and analgesic effect on the organ.
Physiotherapy and other methods
In addition to medications, other methods of treating chronic prostatitis are used:
- prostate rectal massage– carried out through the rectum.The procedure eliminates stagnation of prostate juice and also enhances the effect of medications.Contraindicated in case of worsening of the disease and in the presence of stones in the prostate,
- Physiotherapy improves blood circulation in the affected organ and improves its nutrition.Methods usedUHF, electrophoresis, darsonvalizationand others.They are only indicated in the remission phase,
- Prostatitis involves not only the organs, but also the psyche of a man.He may needhelp from a psychologist or psychotherapist,
- acupunctureis a common method of treating chronic prostatitis.The procedure reaches the organ indirectly, through acupuncture points,
- exercises, such as squats, walking, jumping will increase blood circulation in the pelvis and eliminate congestion,
- actively usedbalneotherapy– treatment with mineral waters.
Medications are an integral part of the treatment of chronic prostatitis.But they can cause a number of complications.And as the treatment of this type of disease is long-term, people have found ways to partially replace these medications.Came to the rescuetraditional medicine.
The leader among folk remedies for the treatment of prostatitis arepumpkin seeds.They contain a lot of zinc, essential for men's health.The seeds can be consumed separately: 30 grams will replenish the daily need for the essential microelement.You can also grind them in a meat grinder and mix with honey, making balls from the resulting mixture.They need to be stored in the refrigerator and consumed 1 piece before meals.
It is very useful to drink it for prostate inflammationfreshly squeezed juices from beets, carrots, cucumber and asparagus.The volume per day must be at least 0.5 liters.
BlueberriesPerfect for restoring the prostate.Contains many useful substances, microelements and vitamins.
In rare cases, in the treatment of prostatitishave to resort to surgery.Indications include lack of improvement with conservative treatment, as well as acute processes: abscess and other purulent inflammation of the prostate, acute urinary retention, proliferation of glandular tissue, as well as benign and malignant formations.
Surgical treatment is carried out using different methods: It can be partial resection of an organ, opening of ulcers, excision of the foreskin or removal of the entire gland.
How to prevent the development of chronic prostatitis
Prevention of this diseasecan be primary or secondary.
Primary preventionis to prevent the occurrence of the disease and comes down to the following measures:
- maintaining immunity,
- regularity of sexual activity,
- physical exercises and moderate loads.This is especially important for those who lead a sedentary lifestyle,
- avoid hypothermia,
- stopping infectious foci in the body,
- timely treatment of urogenital infections,
- be sure to undergo routine medical examinations,
- do not abuse alcohol and smoking.
Secondary preventionincludes measures to prevent disease relapse.In the first year after suffering from prostatitis, a man is obliged to visit a urologist once every 3 months.So – once every 6 months.If an exacerbation of the disease does not occur, the patient is removed from dispensary observation.
Excellent for preventing prostatitissanatorium resort treatment is suitable.Modern sanatoriums offer complexes of physiotherapy and balneotherapy procedures, as well as other natural resources.
Importantmonitor your diet too.Include more vegetables and fruits and a variety of cereals in the menu.You should also enrich your diet with fermented dairy products.Eating seafood will compensate for the lack of zinc.
You should avoid salty, spicy and smoked foods, and not overuse seasonings.Legumes, fatty foods and flour products should be excluded.
Chronic prostatitis is a slow but long-term process.He is insidious with complications:
- cystitis, pyelonephritis - urolithiasis,
- vesiculitis - an inflammatory process in the seminal vesicles,
- Orchiepididymitis is an inflammatory process of the testicles,
- gland hypotrophy,
- infertility and impotence.
Treatment of the disease -quite a long process.But it's worth following this path to the end to preserve your health and preserve the chance of having healthy children.