Acute and Chronic Prostatitis (Part One)

Prostatitis is an infection disease of the prostate gland that affects about 38% of sexually active men.

The causes of the disease are still under study, but it is certain that bacterial infections are responsible for causing some types of prostatitis.

Predisposing factors are thought to be lower urinary tract infections (cystitis and urethritis), decreased immunity, stress, and local trauma.

The disease can present with several clinical signs, which may include:

PAIN: is characteristic in prostate infections and often leads the patient to the doctor as well as guiding the latter towards a diagnosis of prostatitis.

• Pain in one or both testicles.
• Feeling of heaviness in the Perineal area (from Testicles to Anus).
• Pain in the thigh area.
• Burning at the tip of the urethra, during and after urination.
• Pain in the lower abdomen with the feeling of incomplete emptying of the bladder.

SEXUAL SPHERE DISORDERS: More often observed in patients with Chronic Prostatitis symptoms for several years, causing repeated flare-ups.

• This duration of the disease makes most patients anxious, and they often turn to a neurologist.
• A decrease in sexual desire.
• Weakened erection.
• May have signs of blood in semen.
• Premature ejaculation.

URINARY DISORDERS: Can also be present in patients with Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia, as well as in patients suffering from Prostatitis. The difference is that this sign is later in patients with BPH and immediate in patients with Prostatitis.

• May have interruptions during the act of urination.
• Frequent urination with small amounts of urine.
• Urination with dribbling at the end.
• Frequent urges to urinate at night.
• Decrease in the strength of the urine flow.
• Feeling of incomplete bladder emptying.

REPRODUCTIVE FAILURE: Patients suffering for a long time from this group of symptoms usually also experience a decrease in reproductive capability.

PROSTATITIS can manifest in both bacterial and non-bacterial forms.

ACUTE BACTERIAL PROSTATITIS

Acute bacterial prostatitis begins immediately with high fever for several days, chills, perineal and scrotal pain, back pain, and severe urinary disorders.

The patient should be taken to a doctor, who by means of rectal examination, in these cases finds that the prostate gland is swollen, enlarged, hot, tender (fluctuant), and very painful to touch.

Usually, these patients report a long history of clinical signs and that at a certain moment suddenly, the above signs have also appeared.

It is considered that prostatitis is caused by microbial agents, but these microbes cannot always be detected by microbiological laboratory examinations.

When the specialist doctor is informed of these clinical signs, he should communicate calmly with the patient and should carefully review all clinical and bacteriological examinations, the ultrasound of the urinary tract, the prostate, and the seminal ducts.