The prostate, a walnut-sized gland located below a man's bladder, produces some of the fluid contained in semen and is partially responsible for moving semen through the urethra during ejaculation. One common dysfunction of the prostate is prostatitis, or the inflammation and swelling of the prostate gland.
While prostatitis affects men in all age groups, it's more common in males age 50 and younger. Men with prostatitis may experience pain while urinating or ejaculating, along with flu-like symptoms and extreme tenderness in the groin area.
Prostatitis manifests in one of four types:
- Acute bacterial prostatitis is a relatively rare form with rapid development. It may occur in conjunction with a urinary tract infection and sometimes leads to more frequent, urgent and/or painful urination. Antibiotics typically eliminate the problem in two to four weeks.
- Asymptomatic inflammatory prostatitis may go unnoticed unless a doctor discovers it while testing for prostate health. Since this form presents no symptoms, treatment typically isn't needed.
- Chronic bacterial prostatitis occurs repeatedly and more gradually than acute bacterial prostatitis. Antibiotics are effective in 60 to 80 percent of men with this form of prostatitis.
- Chronic nonbacterial prostatitis is also referred to as chronic pelvic pain syndrome. This is the most common yet least understood form of prostatitis. Antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs, and alpha blockers are most often used for treatment.
Untreated prostatitis can lead to serious complications such as prostatic abscess (collections of pus that need to be drained), epididymitis (inflammation of a sperm-carrying coiled tube in the testicles), bacterium (bacterial infection of the blood), semen abnormalities and infertility.