Prostate problems

The prostate is a gland that is found below the bladder. Its function is to produce semen. Unfortunately, most men eventually have some sort of problem that affects their prostate. Three main problems are:

• infection
• enlargement or
• cancer

Prostate infections usually occur in men between the ages of 30 and 50 who are sexually active. If you have an acute infection, you will know that something is wrong. You may have fever, chills, and low back pain. You will feel like you need to urinate all the time, but it will hurt when you do. With a chronic infection, you might have pain in the testicles or penis and pain when you ejaculate. Most infections, whether chronic or acute, can be treated with medications.

Prostate enlargement is also called benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH. This is rarely seen in men under 40. It occurs in half the men over 50 and 80 percent of men over age 70. You will notice the symptoms. You have to urinate much more often. You begin to get up several times a night to urinate. When you do, you have trouble starting and stopping urine flow, and a weak stream when you are urinating.

There are several treatment options for BPH. Medications such as prazosin (Minipress) or hormones like finasteride (Proscar) can be helpful in many cases. There are also many surgical procedures that can help. Transurethral resection of the prostate, a "shaving" of the prostate, used to be the only option. There are now procedures that use lasers, microwaves, "balloons," and other methods. Many of these are experimental, and it has yet to be shown if they are as effective as the transurethral resection of the prostate.

The most serious prostate problem is cancer. This disease may show no symptoms at all when it begins. Prostate cancer is more common in men over 60 but can occur in younger men. In men who do show symptoms, common signs are weight loss, bone pain, shortness of breath, swollen lymph nodes, and problems urinating. Treatments include radiation, surgery, and hormone treatment. The prognosis is good if the disease is found early.

Last Reviewed 2005

Disclaimer: This content is reviewed periodically and is subject to change as new health information becomes available. The information provided is intended to be informative and educational and is not a replacement for professional medical evaluation, advice, diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional.

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