According to statistics, one third of working-age men develop prostatitis at different stages of life. Persistent pain, impotence, infertility - this is not an exhaustive list of problems that threaten patients without treatment. Due to the urgent and dangerous nature of the disease, its initial symptoms and manifestations, all men know. In this article, you will learn about all the signs and diagnostic methods that allow you to recognize prostatitis.
Clinical images in early stages of development
Prostatitis is an inflammatory injury to a man's prostate gland. The following forms of the disease are distinguished: acute and chronic bacterial prostatitis, chronic pelvic pain syndrome, asymptomatic prostatitis. Each form manifests in different ways, has distinctive signs and features of course.
It is difficult to say how the disease will progress in individual men. Presence of certain signs depends on a number of external and internal factors. To facilitate the identification of the pathology, it is common to divide all the symptoms of prostatitis into three broad groups: those related to urination disorders, sexual dysfunction, psychiatric subject. The first and most important symptoms of prostatitis (except the asymptomatic form) may be the following in men:
- Pain in the pelvis, back, groin.
- Pain and burning when urinating.
- Difficulty urinating.
- Feel the bladder is not completely empty and want to urinate.
Pain in the pelvis, back, groin area, feeling of an empty bladder, and wanting to urinate fake are all signs of prostatitis.
The listed symptoms occur due to impaired urinary function, which are due to anatomical features of the structure and location of the bladder and prostate gland. Signs of prostatitis associated with sexual dysfunction are also significant and pronounced. Men most often give the following complaints:
- Weak erection.
- Start to ejaculate quickly during intercourse.
- Lack of orgasm or decreased sensitivity.
- Pain in the urethra and rectum during ejaculation.
Problems with urination and difficulties in sexual life due to prostatitis bother many men. Patients with prostatitis are forced to change their way of life, reject the habits, and family relationships become more complicated. Your problem phobia increases stress, anxiety, and decreased libido, which can be called an indirect sign of prostatitis, which belongs to the third group of symptoms above (psychosis). God).
Prostatitis in men can often be confused with prostate adenoma or cancer, a pathology of the bladder. All of these diseases appear to be similar, especially in the early stages. It is difficult to differentiate them from an unprepared person, so differential diagnosis is made by analyzing all available objective symptoms, laboratory research data and instruments. Since each form of prostatitis has its own signs and characteristics, caution should be exercised when considering them separately.
Features of some forms of the disease
Acute prostatitis is an inflammation of a male prostate gland caused by the entry of pathogens into the organ through the blood, lymph or urethra. The disease begins suddenly and is characterized by the severity of all clinical signs. The main symptoms of acute prostatitis:
- The increase in body temperature up to 39-40 degrees.
- General symptoms of intoxication (headache, weakness, fatigue, decreased performance, etc. ).
- Severe pain in the perineum, sacrum, above the pubic joint in men.
- Frequent, painful urination.
- Sometimes men have urinary retention.
A temperature of 39-40 is a clear sign of prostatitis.
As a rule, acute inflammation of the prostate gland ends with recovery or in sequence (symptoms can appear for several months). But often this form of prostatitis is primary and is the result of the presence of bad habits (alcohol abuse, smoking, etc. ), sedentary lifestyle, lack of vitamins and minerals, abstinence. prolonged sexual intercourse or arising from a sexually transmitted infection or ingestion of normal microbiological agents. The clinical picture of chronic prostatitis appears more sketchy than the acute form, the symptoms of the disease are inconsistent, which greatly complicates the diagnosis. For the chronic form of prostatitis, the following symptoms are most typical:
- Increased need to urinate, even at night.
- Pain during urination, and also during ejaculation.
- Dull pain in the lower back, pelvis, upper chest, v. v.
Chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS) in men combines recurrent pain in the prostate gland area, temporary disturbances of the urinary and reproductive systems. CPPS in medicine is a broader concept because, genetically, the pathology may be based on a tumor or ischemic, nervous system disorders, not just inflammation. The inconsistency of the presence of signs of prostatitis in chronic pelvic pain syndrome significantly complicates the diagnosis, but it is much more difficult to perform in the asymptomatic form. In these cases, the data of the laboratory research methods and tools play a key and decisive role.
Diagnostic techniques
Relying on the symptoms of prostatitis alone cannot make a definitive diagnosis. In addition, the doctor must collect information about the medical history: information about the time of onset of symptoms, their relationship to major and important life events, physical shocks, andspirit, all the factors that can cause are clarified, v. v. Physiological examination is always performed - digital rectal examination of the patient's knee-elbow, lying on his side, with legs bent or standing forward. During this study, you can find characteristic signs of prostatitis (not necessarily all):
- Increase in the size of the male gonads.
- The shape of the organ is precise or flat with an indentation.
- Consistency or pasty
- The smoothness of the contours of the prostate gland.
- Increased soreness under pressure.
Further examination of a patient with symptoms of prostatitis was complemented by laboratory methods. General and biochemical blood tests are prescribed - there are no specific changes in the indicators, only indirect signs that help assess the presence of the inflammatory process in the male body (an increase inleukocyte count, acute stage protein) ESR). The results of the urine test will be very valuable, helping to predict the presence of the infectious process in the genital tract, helping to identify the pathogen to start treating the etiology. In addition, urologists can prescribe prostate secretion analysis, spermography.
Among the instrumental methods for diagnosing prostate diseases, the most informative is TRUS - transrectal ultrasound. In this case, a special sensor is used, which the doctor inserts into the rectum. This is uncomfortable for the patient, but is offset by the informative content of this method. With the help of TRUS, it is possible to evaluate the structure of the organ, evaluate the presence of tissue inflammation, the degree of narrowing of the urinary tract and rule out the presence of stones. The main anaphylactic signs of prostatitis: organ enlargement, edema, fibrosis, sclerotic tissue changes, coarse and heterogeneous granular structure.
In addition, patients with symptoms of prostatitis were measured ureter - a special diagnostic manipulation, in which the speed of male urination was measured. Based on the data of this study, it is possible to draw conclusions about how narrow the urethra is, the braking function. Ureter measurement should not replace TRUS, but rather confirm the findings and signs of existing prostatitis.
Prostatitis screening plan can be extended if indicated in men. To clarify the individual points involved in the diagnosis, a cystoscopy, a pelvic CT scan can be performed. In unclear cases, a biopsy is performed to differentiate it from tumor processes.
What to do when symptoms first appear
The biggest and most common mistake many men make when they have the signs and symptoms of prostatitis is to wait. Each patient hopes that unpleasant symptoms are temporary and will disappear soon. Untreated prostatitis will endanger health, lead to irreversible changes in the body, lead to impaired erection mechanisms, infertility, or even worse - an evil processcount (turn to cancer).
To prevent serious complications, every man at the first sign of prostatitis should consult a urologist for treatment. First of all, men are treated with etiotropic methods - anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, taking measures to strengthen the immune system. No surgery is required in the absence of complications. Men who have had prostatitis in the past are at high risk for the disease and the likelihood of recurrence, so after recovery, prevention plays a huge role.