The most common urinary disease in men is prostatitis, inflammation of the prostate gland. The gland is located next to the urinary tract and the disease is often caused by infection - bacteria, viruses or protozoa.Prostatitis is often caused by bacteria and, like any inflammation, is accompanied by acute pain.This is the first and main symptom of the disease.Treatment prescribed by your doctor will help relieve pain caused by prostatitis, but while you wait for the doctor to arrive, you can use methods that do not require medical intervention.
Occurrence and localization of pain
Pain varies depending on the level of activity of the inflammatory process.
- In acute prostatitis or exacerbation of chronic disease, pain usually appears within a few hours.Typically, it is localized to the perineum and may radiate to the head of the penis, the suprapubic area, the anus, or the lower back. An acute process is the cause of severe pain, which becomes more intense after urination or ejaculation.Urinating can also be painful.
- With chronic prostatitis, pain often appears and is more intense, especially in the morning or due to sitting for a long time.
- Patients experience the most intense sensations when suffering from prostatic abscess or acute progressive prostatitis.The pain is very severe, sharp or throbbing, sometimes accompanied by fever and fever. This condition requires an immediate visit to the doctor.
What to do if you have pain
You shouldn't sit back and wait for the feeling to subside.Acute prostatitis requires treatment by a qualified physician: it will not go away on its own, and if left untreated, it can become chronic.Chronic prostatitis is more difficult to treat and sometimes recurs.Its exacerbations resemble the symptoms of acute prostatitis and are relieved by medication prescribed by a urologist.You should not delay seeing a doctor: the sooner you start treatment, the faster you can recover.But while you wait to see a urologist, you can relieve some of the uncomfortable symptoms at home.This will not eliminate the cause of the disease - it will only improve the condition.
How to relieve pain when having prostatitis
If the pain is caused by an acute process, it will not be possible to eliminate it quickly and permanently until the cause of the disease is eliminated.But you can weaken it.Recommendations are given by doctors, but in general they are focused on a healthy lifestyle, freedom from hypothermia and bad habits.
Walk if your condition allows.According to some data, chronic prostatitis, including chronic pelvic pain syndrome, develops against the background of stagnation. If a man sits for a long time, pressure on the prostate increases and congestion forms in the pelvic area - this contributes to pain and aggravation of the condition.Pain after sitting for a long time disappears if a person walks, so patients who do not have an exacerbation should maintain moderate physical activity and avoid stagnation. That is why patients should undergo physiotherapy and prostate massage – they improve microcirculation and prevent stagnation. If we are talking about an acute process, physical activity is contraindicated, especially with fever and fever.On the contrary, in such cases, it is advisable to stay in bed and if there are signs of sepsis such as high fever and body aches, seek emergency help.
Drink more water.Prostatitis is often accompanied by damage to the urinary tract: pathogens accumulate in the urethra and urethra.Urethritis develops, causing symptoms to worsen: the man painfully goes to the toilet, feels pain and burning, often has urges, sometimes artificial or too strong. This condition also requires medication but can be alleviated by drinking plenty of water and going to the bathroom regularly.When sick, the body needs more water and frequent urination helps remove bacteria from the urethra and reduce inflammation.With prostatitis, defecation can also be painful: drinking plenty of water will help soften the stool and reduce pain.For the same reason, doctors sometimes include laxatives in treatment regimens, but they should not be used without the advice of a specialist.
Take pain relievers.It is not recommended to use painkillers before an examination or a visit to the doctor: they can obscure the clinical picture.But the doctor can prescribe pain relievers to make the patient feel more comfortable.Try not to use drugs without a serious reason.In the treatment of chronic pelvic pain syndrome, urologists sometimes prescribe anxiolytics - drugs that help reduce anxiety and depression that occur with long-term illness. You should not take such medications without a doctor's prescription.
Checked.The urologist makes a diagnosis based on examinations, and if you have the opportunity and do not want to wait, get tested yourself.To diagnose prostatitis, it is necessary to examine urine and semen, not only microscopically but also bacteriologically. It is better to carry out a bacteriological study to determine the sensitivity of the pathogen to more drugs - this will help the doctor prescribe treatment more accurately.Show the results to your urologist at your appointment.He will decipher them and prescribe drug treatment according to the results of the analysis.
What not to do during an acute course
Severe pain is often associated with acute prostatitis or exacerbation of chronic prostatitis.In this condition, the prostate is especially vulnerable: even doctors are advised to exercise caution when manipulating patients. The patient himself must comply with certain restrictions.We will tell you what you should never do so as not to accidentally make your condition worse.
Self-administer antibiotics.Don't take serious medications without a prescription!For acute and chronic bacterial prostatitis, the urologist will prescribe a treatment regimen.As a rule, it includes antibiotics to which the pathogen is sensitive, most often fluoroquinolones - they penetrate prostate tissue better than others. But prostatitis is a disease that requires a thoughtful medical approach.The doctor determines both the duration of treatment and the dosage required to destroy the bacteria.It is very difficult to determine such details on your own without medical education.Therefore, self-medication often leads to a situation where bacteria do not disappear from the prostate, but become resistant to antibiotics.These forms of prostatitis are more difficult to treat and often cause more concern.
Warms or cools the prostate.It seems that heat and cold can relieve pain, but in bacterial inflammation, on the contrary, they are harmful.Heating an inflamed prostate increases blood circulation and helps bacteria multiply, thus only making the condition worse.Cooling weakens local immunity and makes pathogens worse.In the treatment of chronic prostatitis, hypothermia and overheating above body temperature should be avoided. This applies even in the intervals between exacerbations and during the acute process, it is especially important to follow the rule.
Use physical therapy.Physiotherapeutic methods such as finger massage are used in the treatment of chronic prostatitis and chronic pelvic pain syndrome to prevent stagnation, but their use during periods of exacerbation is harmful, even dangerous. Acute pain is contraindicated for any interventions: they can only increase the pain and worsen the patient's condition.And if an abscess is suspected, physiotherapy can lead to its breakthrough, making the problem worse.It's best to move on to massage and other treatments under your doctor's supervision once your condition has stabilized.
Drink alcohol.A man may think that alcohol will help him relieve pain at home.But alcohol in acute inflammation is strictly contraindicated.On the contrary, the patient should exclude from the diet all foods that irritate the urinary tract: spicy, fatty, salty. Going on a diet will provide much more effective pain relief, but alcohol will only cause more harm.
Preventing pain caused by prostatitis
Even if you have chronic prostatitis, you can minimize the number of exacerbations.When in remission, the disease hardly bothers the patient;The pain is often associated with a more severe or subacute process.For long-term remission, several recommendations should be followed.
Don't be too cold.Doctors recommend dressing warmly when it's cold, not staying out in the cold for long, and not sitting in the cold.Hypothermia entails a decrease in local immunity, which can cause an exacerbation of the condition.
Be physically active.A risk factor for the occurrence and exacerbation of prostatitis is obstruction. People with an active lifestyle are less likely to be stagnant.Chronic prostatitis is characterized by weakening of muscle tone - physical activity will help prevent this outcome.
Get physical therapy and massage.Not all sources confirm the effectiveness of physiotherapy, but in some cases it can alleviate the patient's condition.Massage, like physical activity, is necessary to prevent stagnation.As a rule, classic digital rectal massage is prescribed, but if the patient cannot constantly visit the doctor, self-massage devices can be used.
Adhere to the diet.Drinking plenty of water and avoiding spicy and salty foods in your diet are doctor's advice to ease the condition.You should give up bad habits.
Maintain sexual hygiene.Cleaning the private area, especially after sex, prevents bacteria from entering the urethra and entering the prostate.To prevent infection, do not neglect it and use barrier protection during sex.
Bottom line
Do not worry.Pain from prostatitis is a very unpleasant but treatable phenomenon.Remember that home remedies will not eliminate the cause of the disease: be sure to consult your doctor, get tested and start a course of treatment.Only qualified treatment will help you cope with the problem and return to normal life.