Calculous prostatitis is a complication of a chronic inflammatory process in the prostate. With this disease, tartar forms in the excretory ducts of the prostate and acini. Due to the development of the pathological process, the patient's urge to urinate becomes more frequent, pain occurs in the perineum and lower abdomen, and the erection is impaired. You should not take the course of this disease, as it can ultimately lead to a number of health problems.
What is calculous prostatitis
This disease is a form of chronic prostatitis. The disease is characterized by the formation of prostatoliths or stones, one of the most common consequences of a prolonged inflammatory process observed in the prostate.
Stones in the prostate are most often detected during a routine exam in about 9% of men of different ages.
There are three age peaks in the incidence of this form of prostatitis:
- 30-39 years old. As a rule, the disease is not detected in patients under the age of 30. However, the disease gradually rejuvenates. In people in this age group, the development of calculous prostatitis is associated with a long course of chronic prostatitis caused by gonorrhea, chlamydia, ureaplasmosis or mycoplasmosis.
- 40-59 years old. In men in this age group, the disease most often causes prostate adenoma.
- Over 60 years old. In this case, calculating prostatitis most often develops against the background of the extinction of sexual function.
Causes and risk factors
The formation of stones in the prostate can be due to two types of reasons:
- True or primary, which is characterized by the direct development of the disease in the ducts of the gland or acini.
- Secondary or false, in which there is a migration of stones from the upper urinary tract. Most often, the place of their formation is the bladder, kidneys or urethra. The reason for the development of calculous prostatitis may be urolithiasis.
Depending on the nature of the onset of the disease, the reasons for its development are divided into two groups:
- Exogenous. In this case, we are talking about those factors that are not related to the work of the body, but act on it from the outside. This includes drug addiction, smoking, or alcohol abuse.
- Endogenous. Concretions occur against the background of any disruption in the functioning of the body. We are talking about organ damage or complications after surgery. Bacterial damage to the prostate is also linked to these factors.
Alcohol abuse can trigger the development of calculous prostatitis in men.
Calculous prostatitis usually develops against the background of stagnant inflammatory changes in the prostate. Such processes occur due to insufficient emptying of the prostate glands, therefore, the following factors are the main causes of the disease:
- lack of regular sex life;
- the predominance of a sedentary lifestyle;
- replace sex with masturbation;
- bad habits, such as alcoholism or smoking;
- inflammatory processes in the prostate caused by the ingress of microbes into the organ.
Experts distinguish two main pathological mechanisms leading to the formation of stones in the organ and its ducts:
- Violation of the secretory function, as a result of which a significant stagnation of the secretion of the prostate is formed.
- Throw urine into the prostate cavity. This can occur against the background of a malfunction of the genitourinary system, the formation of fistulas and the influence of a number of other negative factors.
Symptoms
The signs of calculous prostatitis are in many ways similar to the development of chronic inflammation of the prostate, but they are more pronounced. Most patients with prostatitis diagnosed with this form complain of difficulty and pain during urination.
The difference with chronic prostatitis in this case is the pain that is present in the patient around the clock, and not just at night. The reason for such a clinical picture is most often the disturbed process of the outflow of urinary and prostatic secretions. This is due to the complete or partial obstruction of the duct by a stone.
A number of other symptoms of the disease should also be highlighted:
- The presence of pain in the pelvis and perineum. In addition, they can manifest themselves not only during urination. Patients have unpleasant sensations in the tailbone and lower abdomen, which do not depend on the specific time of day.
- Pathological impurities appear in semen. Often there is a bloody discharge, and pus is only present in extreme cases.
- Pain on urination against the background of frequent false desires. In most patients, very little urine is excreted. However, it may be completely absent.
- Dyserection. Due to the fact that the prostate duct is blocked, the normal flow of semen from the organ is disturbed. All of this leads to the inability to have sex.
In the most severe cases of the development of the disease, the patient may lack an erection completely and drastically decrease libido.
Diagnostic
Magnetic resonance imaging gives good results to accurately identify the disease.
Before treating calculous prostatitis, the patient should be carefully examined. The urologist is engaged in the diagnosis of this disease. He is obliged to make a preliminary diagnosis based on the patient's complaints, as well as the subsequent physical and instrumental examination. It includes the following procedures:
- Rectal examination of the prostate. It is performed by palpation. In the presence of calculous prostatitis, the patient has a kind of crepitation and a bumpy surface of stones.
- Transrectal ultrasound of the prostate. Through this procedure, stones are identified that have the appearance of hyperechoic formations with a clearly visible acoustic path. The number of such formations, their size, their location and their structure are studied.
- Urography survey. The procedure allows you to identify the presence of prostalitis.
- MRI and prostate scan. These techniques are very effective and are used to confirm the results of previous studies.
As additional procedures are used: urethrography, pyelography and cystography.
In addition to instrumental techniques, the diagnosis of calculous prostatitis includes laboratory tests, which include the following procedures:
- Study of the secretion of the prostate.
- Analysis for bacteriological culture of urine and urethral material.
- PCR study, during which a scratching is performed, studied for the presence of genital infections.
- Blood tests. Most often, a biochemical analysis is given.
- Urine analysis.
- Semen analysis for biochemistry.
- Bacteriological seeding of the ejaculate.
If we talk about differential diagnosis, then its task is to differentiate calculator prostatitis from tuberculosis, prostate adenoma, prostate oncology, as well as various types of prostatitis.
Processing
How to cure calculator prostatitis? Treatment of calculous prostatitis is prescribed by a doctor on the basis of a thorough diagnosis. Depending on the degree of development of the disease, several treatment options are possible. Let's take a look at each of them in more detail.
Drug therapy
The course of treatment is prescribed by the doctor strictly individually.
Treatment for chronic calculous prostatitis with pills can last from one to three months. This type of therapy is primarily aimed at achieving stable remission and preventing complications of the disease.
Regardless of the cause of the disease, the patient is prescribed antibacterial drugs. Antibiotics are prescribed based on the results of the analysis of urethral secretion and urine culture.
The most common remedies used in the treatment of calculous prostatitis are:
- Fluoroquinolones. This is the most effective group of antibiotics used in the treatment of calculous prostatitis. However, these funds can only be used after the presence of tuberculosis has been completely ruled out.
- Tetracyclines. They are used less often, as they often cause the appearance of side effects.
- Penicillins. Classical antibiotics that have a wide range of effects on the pathogenic microflora.
- Cephalosporins.
Physiotherapy
To enhance the effect of drug therapy and improve the functioning of the prostate, the following physiotherapy techniques are used:
- Magnetotherapy. It is used to remove edema and normalize the process of blood circulation.
- Laser therapy. Eliminates pain syndrome and helps reduce the inflammatory process.
- Prostate massage. Allows you to restore the patency of the ducts, improving blood circulation in the prostate.
In some cases, the treatment of calculous prostatitis requires a radical approach. In this case, various surgical techniques are used, the most popular of which is prostatectomy.
Possible complications
Exercise is the best prevention of calculator prostatitis.
If the patient does not receive timely treatment, the patient may develop chronic calculous prostatitis. It can be fraught with the following dangerous complications:
- the development of an abscess;
- prostate fibrosis;
- potency problems;
- urinary incontinence;
- various forms of vesiculitis.
Therefore, it is very important to timely identify calculous prostatitis and start treating it. As a prophylaxis for this disease, one should stop alcohol and tobacco, play sports, treat infections in time and prevent hypothermia of the body.