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Prostatitis - Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment

Definition

Prostatitis is a form of inflammation of the prostate gland. Because women do not have a prostate gland, it is only found in men. It may account for up to 25 percent of all office visits by young and middle-aged men for complaints involving the genital and urinary systems.

Causes

There are 2 kinds of prostatitis are present: acute prostatitis and chronic bacterial prostatitis. Both are caused by an infection of the prostate. The bacteria that cause prostatitis may get into the prostate from the urethra by backward flow of infected urine or stool from the rectum.

If your prostatitis is caused by bacterial infection, knowing that should help your doctor treat the infection and make you better. Unfortunately, many doctors and clinics do only cursory checking for bacteria. But even doctors who do very careful checking for bacteria, and indeed find bacteria, cannot always make their patients' symptoms go away.

Symptoms

Symptoms of acute prostatitis are-
Chills
Low back pain
Abdominal pain (above the pubic bone)
Perineal pain (pelvic floor)
Urinary retention (inability to completely empty bladder)
Pain with bowel movement
Recurring bladder infections
Pain in the lower back and genital area
Blood in the urine
Difficulty urinating
Decreased force of urinary stream
Foul-smelling urine

Treatment

If you have acute infectious prostatitis, you will usually need to take antimicrobial medication for 7 to 14 days.Analgesic drugs will relieve pain and discomfort.
If you have chronic infectious prostatitis then you will require antimicrobial medication for a longer period of time usually 4 to 12 weeks. About 60 percent of all cases of chronic infectious prostatitis clear up with this
treatment.

If you have noninfectious prostatitis, you will not need antimicrobial medication. Depending on the symptoms, you may receive one of a variety of treatments. If your condition responds to muscle relaxation, you may be given an alpha blocker, a drug that can relax the muscle tissue in the prostate and reduce the difficulty in urination.
Special exercises and relaxation techniques can improve symptoms of prostatitis in some men, perhaps because tight or irritated muscles can contribute to the condition. Common techniques include :-
1. Exercise
2. Biofeedback
3. Sitz baths
4. Prostate massage

One of the most important elements of the treatment of any kind of chronic prostatitis is a frank and open discussion between the patient and his doctor.The doctor needs to be given a detailed explanation of the patient's condition with particular emphasis on their long term health.