Does Sex Affect Prostate Enlargement

Talk With Cleveland Urology Associates

With all of these conflicting and complicated circumstances, it is always best to consult with your doctor if you are experiencing BPH especially with sexual side effects.

Trust Cleveland Urology Associates;to determine which treatment will be best for all of the symptoms you are experiencing.

As always, if you have any further questions or would like to schedule an appointment, please call ;or request an appointment online today.

Indwelling Versus Intermittent Catheters

There are two types of urinary catheters, indwelling catheters and intermittent self catheters . Indwelling catheters are left for longer periods of time inside the body. They may be suitable under some circumstances, but are;not recommended since they are;known to cause leakage and complications such as inflammation, urinary tract infections, bladder stones and urethral strictures.;

An intermittent catheter is inserted into the urethra only when the bladder needs to be emptied and is removed immediately afterwards. It mimics the natural way of bladder voiding in intervals and continence can be maintained between urinations. Disposable catheters are also often used while waiting for medication to take effect or in anticipation of an operation.;

Intermittent catheters can have a very positive effect on quality of life. In particular, they can help improve sex life, as there is no equipment to remove and less worry about leakage, leading to better confidence and spontaneity.

How Do Doctors Diagnose Prostate Cancer

Ok, by now, youve been screened. Your PSA score and/or your DRE have raised concerns. Whats next?

• Multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging . This useful imaging test produces different types of scans to give your doctor a fuller picture of your prostate. Your doctor can then target suspicious areas for biopsy and testing.

• Transrectal ultrasound. Your doctor inserts a finger-sized probe into your rectum. The probe emits waves of sound that bounce off your prostate. Those waves create images, called sonograms, that help your doctor evaluate your prostate and spot abnormalities. This procedure is frequently done as part of a biopsy.

• Biopsy. This procedure removes tissue from your prostate. Images from the multiparametric MRI are matched to images created by the ultrasound to pinpoint exact the spots that need to be tested.

Before your biopsy, your doctor will numb the area around your prostate so you dont feel pain. However, you may experience some discomfort or feel pressure during the procedure. Then, a thin, hollow needle is inserted into your prostate to remove small tissue samples. Its most often guided by an ultrasound probe thats inserted into your rectum. The whole thing takes about 20 to 30 minutes.

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What Is The Grade Group

A new system called the Grade Group was introduced in 2014 to further clarify the Gleason Score. This is how it breaks down:

• Grade Group 1: Gleason Score of 6 or less; indicates a slow moving cancer that may not require treatment.

• Grade Group 2: Gleason Score of 7 ; though not as slow growing as group 1, this indicates a likely positive outlook

• Grade Group 3: Gleason Score of 7 ; faster-moving but still less likely to spread beyond the prostate than groups 4 and 5

• Grade Group 4: Gleason Score of 8; indicates a cancer that will likely grow and spread quickly.

• Grade Group 5: Gleason Score of 9 or 10; cancers in this group are twice as likely as Grade Group 4 to grow and spread aggressively.

What Is A Prostate Infection

A prostate infection occurs when your prostate and the surrounding area become inflamed. The prostate is about the size of a walnut. Its located between the bladder and the base of the penis. The tube that moves urine from the bladder to the penis runs through the center of your prostate. The urethra also moves semen from the sex glands to the penis.

Several types of infections can affect the prostate. Some men with prostatitis experience no symptoms at all, while others report many, including intense pain.

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Ways An Enlarged Prostate Could Affect Your Sex Life

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Prostate enlargement and erectile dysfunction are separate problems. Both increase with age, but one causes problems in the bathroom and the other in the bedroom. However, the two are somewhat linked.

Certain treatments that relieve enlarged prostate can cause ED and other sexual side effects. On the other hand, treating ED can improve enlarged prostate symptoms.

Prevention Diet: 7 Foods to Prevent an Enlarged Prostate

1. Postsurgical problems Prostate enlargement can interfere with urination. It can cause sudden urges to urinate, urinary frequency, inability to empty the bladder, or a weak urine stream. A surgery called transurethral resection of the prostate can help relieve these symptoms. But, men who have this procedure often experience sexual side effects after surgery.

Between 50 and 75 percent of men experience retrograde ejaculation after TURP. This means that semen released during orgasm enters the bladder rather than exiting the penis. Retrograde ejaculation, sometimes called dry orgasm, is not harmful but can impair male fertility.

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2. BPH Treatment and Erectile Dysfunction Some men who have the TURP procedure also experience erectile dysfunction, the inability to achieve or maintain an erection. This is not a common side effect of the surgery, but it is possible in 5 to 10 percent of men who have TURP.

Learn More: 12 Ways Sex Helps You Live Longer

Can Sex Increase The Risk Of Prostate Cancer

18 September, 2018

Number of sexual partners, age at first intercourse, and ejaculation frequency appear to influence a mans risk for prostate cancer, according to new research.

The notion that sexual activity might affect prostate cancer risk has been controversial. A meta-analysis published in 2002 reported that increased ejaculation frequency and having more sexual partners were associated with prostate cancer risk, but age at first intercourse was not.

Since then, more research has been conducted. The current study incorporated the newer studies and applied a dose-response analysis to the data to determine the roles of the above factors.

The research team searched relevant databases and identified twenty-two studies on the topic published through April 2018. Overall, the studies included 55,490 participants from nine countries. Most studies came from North America, but Europe, Australia, Asia, the Caribbean, and Cuba were also represented.

They found that men with fewer sexual partners were at lower risk for prostate cancer. For every 10 female partners the men had, their risk increased 1.10 fold.

First intercourse at an older age also seemed to lower prostate cancer risk, which was decreased 4% for every five years of delay.

However, hormonal levels, injury, and inflammation might also be involved, the authors noted.

Additional research is needed to validate these findings, the authors said.

Resources

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Dealing With Erectile Dysfunction: For You And Your Partner

The following information is based on the general experiences of many prostate cancer patients. Your experience may be different. If you have any questions about what prostate cancer treatment services are covered by your health insurance, please contact your health care provider or health insurance provider. This education material was made possible by a Grant from the California Department of Justice, Antitrust Law Section, from litigation settlement funds to benefit Californians diagnosed with cancer or their families.

How Bph Is Treated

A number of medications can relieve symptoms of BPH. However, these medications may cause sexual side effects, such as ejaculation problems and erectile dysfunction.

Other nonsurgical therapies include transurethral microwave thermotherapy and water-induced thermotherapy. Both use heat to destroy prostate tissue and reduce or resolve urinary symptoms.

If medications and/or thermotherapies are unsuccessful, surgery may be recommended.

Excess prostate tissue often can be surgically removed using a transurethral approach, which does not require an outside incision.

A more traditional, open surgery, which does require an incision, may be necessary if the prostate gland is very large or when the bladder has been damaged and needs to be repaired.

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Its Complicated: Enlarged Prostate And Sex

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BPH and sexual function

Prostate enlargement, also known as benign prostatic hyperplasia , and erectile dysfunction are separate problems. Both increase with age, but one causes problems in the bathroom and the other in the bedroom. However, the two are somewhat linked.

BPH happens when your prostate becomes enlarged, but cancer isnt the cause. A mans prostate continues growing throughout most of his adult life. This is why many older men are affected by the condition.

ED is the inability to get or maintain an erection. It can be caused by physical conditions such as:

• diabetes

It can also be caused by psychological issues.

These two conditions dont necessarily seem linked, but certain treatments that relieve BPH can cause ED and other sexual side effects. On the other hand, treating ED can improve enlarged prostate symptoms.

• inability to empty the bladder
• a weak urine stream

A surgery called transurethral resection of the prostate can help relieve these symptoms. Men who have this procedure often experience sexual side effects after surgery.

Between 50 and 75 percent of men experience retrograde ejaculation after TURP, according to Harvard Medical School. This means that semen released during orgasm enters the bladder rather than exiting the penis. Retrograde ejaculation is sometimes called dry orgasm. Its not harmful but can affect male fertility.

What Exactly Is The Prostate

Here are some basics about the prostate:

Your prostate, then, plays an essential role in both sex and reproductionits helping to deliver sperm in search of an egg along with a great orgasm. But things can go wrong with it. The cells in your prostate can start to grow out of control. As those abnormal cells accumulate, fed by male sex hormones like testosterone, they can clump together to form cancerous tumors.

However, prostate cancer can sometimes be aggressive and fast-moving. It can spread beyond your prostate to other parts of your body. First, it may reach your prostates neighbors, like the seminal vesicles, the bladder, or your rectum. It can then move on to your lymph nodes, organs, and, commonly, your bones. Once it has traveled from the prostate, it becomes tougher to treat.

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Do Iuds Cause Heavy Periods

Q My doctor wants me to have some sort of coil or IUD. I talked to one of my friends about it, and she told me that they give you very heavy periods. My period is already heavy!

A I guess that your doctor is not talking about the ordinary coil . He probably means the IUS or Intra-Uterine System, which is a hormone-loaded device. Brand names include Mirena.

The great thing about this system is that after a few months, it usually reduces menstrual bleeding. So it has helped a lot of women by giving them light, manageable menses. It could do the same for you.

The Elephant In The Room

Lets get to the point. Yes, BPH can affect your sex life.

It can cause a reduced sexual drive, there can be a reduction in sexual satisfaction, and thirdly,; it can cause ED or erectile dysfunction. Erectile dysfunction is defined as the inability to attain and maintain an erection for intercourse at least 25% of the time.

Some drugs used to treat BPH can lead to ED. They can also reduce sperm count, lower sperm movement and sperm volume.

At the same time, certain ED treatments like Viagra, Cialis, and Levitra can improve BPH and reduce those urinary symptoms.

Yes, its complicated.

To continue, specifically, Proscar, an anti-testosterone drug prescribed for BPH has been linked to ED in 3.7% of men using it, with 3.3% having diminished libido, whereas alpha-blockers like Flomax can improve the symptoms of BPH with a lower risk of sexual side effects.

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What Is Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among American men, right behind skin cancer. Prostate cancer is also the second most deadly cancer in American men. Prostate cancer is more frequent among African American men than it is among white men. Furthermore, African American men are more likely to die of prostate cancer than are white men.

The vast majority of prostate cancers are a type of cancer called adenocarcinoma. Adenocarcinomas arise from cells that produce fluids like mucus.

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Does Chronic Prostatitis Affect Sexual Function

Symptoms of prostatitis include difficulty to urinate, pain in the genital area and pelvic floor, painful ejaculation, premature ejaculation, erectile dysfunction and low sexual desire. Once the inflammation is treated, sexual problems are resolved. However, in the meantime until remission of inflammation, there are erectile drugs called Phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors that can be used to restore quality of erection and increase perfusion of the prostate gland which is essential to treat the inflammation. In very rare cases only, erectile dysfunction may remain even though symptoms have subsided. If so,, the problem is purely psychogenic and it is highly recommended to visit a Sexologist.

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How Can Alcohol Affect An Enlarged Prostate

Does Having An Enlarged Prostate Affect Sexual Performance

It might. Some men with an enlarged prostate develop erectile dysfunction or problems with ejaculation.

The technical term for an enlarged prostate is benign prostatic hyperplasia .; BPH occurs when prostate tissue increases in size. This growth moves inward, pressing on the urethra . As a result, some men with BPH have trouble urinating and need treatment.

Unfortunately, some treatments might have sexual side effects:

Medications. 5-alpha reducatase inhibitors and alpha-blockers are two types of drugs commonly prescribed for BPH. However, 5-alpha reducatase inhibitors might lower a mans sex drive or interfere with erections. Alpha blockers could lead to difficulty ejaculating.

Finasteride in particular has been associated with a greater risk for ED. In a 2015 study of 700 men with BPH, men who took finasteride gradually developed ED while a comparison group of men who took tamsulosin did not.

Minimally-invasive procedures. These approaches, which could include stents, heat treatments, or laser treatments, can sometimes lead to ED or retrograde ejaculation .

Surgery. Transurethral incision of the prostate , which involves widening the urethra, sometimes results in ED. Transurethral resection of the prostate , in which the inner portion of the prostate is removed, can lead to retrograde ejaculation.

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The Link Between Bph And Sexual Problems

Men with BPH have an enlarged prostate the gland that surrounds the tube that carries urine. Symptoms include:

• Often feeling like you need to urinate
• Trouble starting and stopping urination
• Weak stream of urine

The symptoms may wake you up at night.

Having an enlarged prostate can complicate your sex life in many ways. And instead of curing them,

the conventional ways of treating prostate disease like surgery and drugs make your sexual problems worse.

Before you seek medical treatment for your enlarged prostate, be aware of the following six potential

side effects on your sexual health.

Scientists arent sure why, but they agree that the worse your BPH symptoms are, the more likely youll

have sexual issues such as: 6 Different Ways Enlarged Prostate Affect Your Sex Life

What Are The Best Treatments For Prostate Cancer

Surgery, radiation, hormone therapy, chemotherapylots of treatment options exist for prostate cancer. And, in some cases, you may need no treatment at all. Whats right for you will depend several factors:

• Your PSA level

• Your Gleason score

• Your current health and comorbidities

• The stage of your cancer, particularly whether it remains confined to your prostate or has spread to other parts of your body

Now, lets take a look at the different possibilities:

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