What Are The Symptomatic Effects Of Enlarged Prostate
An enlarged prostate pushes against both the bladder and urethra. This complication often might precipitate several urinary tract symptoms such as frequent urination, an uneasy feeling of always having to urinate, an inconsistent, unsteady stream of urine flow, urination difficulties, a painful or burning sensation while urinating, blood in the urine and frequent nighttime urination. In addition, men stricken with BPH may be at greater risk of developing urinary tract infections, urinary incontinence and bladder or kidney damage. Arguably the most uncomfortable and potentially life-altering problems associated with BPH are the sexual side effects. Such manifestations include:
Side Effects And Risks
The tissues lining the prostate and rectum are delicate and vulnerable to cuts, tears, and abrasions. Massaging the prostate too intensely can easily lead to soreness. In the study described above, for example, 8.3% of participants reported discomfort after prostate massage.
Overly aggressive prostate massage can also cause rectal bleeding, creating a risk of bacterial infection or aggravating hemorrhoids.
Furthermore, manual prostate massage is discouraged for men with acute bacterial prostatitis. The massage increases inflammation and may promote the spread of bacteria to the urethra, other parts of the urinary tract, and the bloodstream.
That said, a few small studies of the effects of prostate massage performed by a physician have shown it to be beneficial as a therapy for chronic prostatitis when paired with antibiotics.
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.
Also Check: Viagra Bph
Can Anything Be Done For Erectile Dysfunction Caused By Prostate Cancer Treatment
Yes, there are things you can try if you have erectile dysfunction after your prostate cancer treatment. You should keep in mind that the following things will affect your ability to have an erection after your prostate cancer treatment:
- How good your erections were before your treatment
- Other medical conditions you have like high blood pressure or diabetes
- Some types of medicines you may take such as medicines for high blood pressure or antidepressants
- Things you do in your life such as drinking or smoking
- Your age
- The type of prostate cancer treatment you had
It is important that you and your partner speak with your doctor or healthcare team about what you can do. Your doctor or healthcare team will speak with you about what might work best for you if you have erectile dysfunction. It is important that you speak with them since some treatments for erectile dysfunction can affect other medical problems you may have.
Types of treatment for erectile dysfunction include:
Leaking Urine During Arousal Or Orgasm
Prostate surgery causes some men to leak urine during arousal or at the point of orgasm. This might become less of a problem as a man recovers from his surgery. But it could be a long term problem for some.
Understandably men can find this embarrassing. It might to help to talk things through with your partner if you have one. Discussing it with a new partner may be particularly difficult. But it could be a relief to consider ways of adjusting to this. It might help to pass urine before you have sex, or to use a condom.
- By Patrick J. Skerrett, Former Executive Editor, Harvard Health
When it comes to prostate trouble, the lions share of attention goes to prostate cancer and an enlarged prostate. A third condition, prostatitis, flies under the radar even though it affects up to one in six men at some point in their lifetimes. It triggers more than two million visits to doctors and untold agony each year.
Prostatitis, which means inflammation of the prostate gland, is an equal opportunity disorder. Unlike prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia , which predominantly affect older men, prostatitis affects men of all ages.
Don’t Miss: Pseudoephedrine And Prostate
Enlarged Prostate And Ed
Living with an enlarged prostate can be even more difficult if you experience erectile dysfunction, or ED. ED happens when the penis cant get hard enough to maintain an erection to allow sexual intercourse.2 More than 50% of men over 40 suffer from some degree of ED.3 Like BPH, ED can lower quality of life for both you and your partner. Learn more by visiting EDcure.org.
A Guide To Prostate Massage
Caitilin Kelly, MD, is board-certified in internal medicine. She is clinical physician practicing at Indiana University Health Bloomington Hospital and the chair of the American College of Physicians’ Hospital Ethics committee. She is a delegate for the Indiana State Medical Association House of Delegates.
Prostate massage is a procedure in which a finger is inserted into the rectum to stimulate the prostate gland. The goal is to release excess seminal fluidthe fluid that mixes with sperm to create semenfrom the ducts of the prostate gland.
Alternative medical practitioners claim that prostate massage can ease prostate inflammation while alleviating pressure on the urinary tract. Among the conditions prostate massage is said to treat are:
- Benign prostatic hyperplasia : enlargement of the prostate
- Prostatitis: inflammation of the prostate
- Urinary hesitancy: difficulty urinating
- Erectile dysfunction: difficulty getting or keeping an erection
Prostate massage is also used for sexual stimulation to help achieve arousal, enhance an erection, or relax the rectum in advance of anal sex.
This article will discuss the medical and sexual purposes of prostate massage. It also covers how the procedure is done, along with the risks and side effects that may come with it.
Also Check: Can Zytiga Cure Prostate Cancer
Persistent Ejaculation And Prostatitis
One study has found a connection between persistent ejaculations and the occurrence of chronic prostatitis, which is inflammation of the prostate over a period of time longer than 3 months.
Symptoms and signs of chronic prostatitis include the following:
- Post-ejaculatory pain is a hallmark of the condition.
- Perineal or pelvic pain without any evidence of a urinary tract infection, which lasts longer than 3 months.
- Pain can be present in the perineum, testes, tip of the penis and the pubic or bladder area.
- Pain which radiates to the back and rectum and makes sitting down uncomfortable.
- Arthralgia.
- Erectile difficulties.
- Sexual dysfunction.
The reason for this is because persistent ejaculation causes buildup of lactic acid and free radicals. These products are not cleared properly by the liver because its activity is suppressed by stress hormones released during the ejaculatory process. The buildup of these products then leads to inflammation of the prostatic tissue.
Masturbation and testicular size
Testicular size can be negatively affected by the following issues:
There are literally over a hundred conditions that can cause testicular atrophy but masturbation is really one activity that one shouldnt worry about causing this issue.
Dont Miss: What Are Symptoms Of Prostate Issues
Is A Prostate Massage The Same Thing As Trying For A Prostate Orgasm
Yes. If you massage the prostate in a way that feels good, youre probably going to have an orgasm if you keep at it.
Some doctors recommend prostate massage therapy to help relieve the symptoms of certain conditions, such as painful ejaculation prostatitis.
Yep! Though evidence on the efficacy of prostate massage for certain conditions is somewhat limited, it does appear to have some benefits.
Also Check: Chemo Pills For Prostate Cancer
What Are Bph Symptoms
The prostate surrounds part of the urethra the tube through which urine leaves the body. BPH, or an enlarged prostate, can result in this tube getting blocked. The block can cause problems with peeing, such as:1
- Weak stream
- Needing to wake up at night to pee
- Pain during urination or after ejaculation
BPH symptoms can get in the way of life. For example, you might become worried with finding a bathroom when you are away from home. Or you may become scared of leaving an embarrassing wet mark on your clothes if you cannot get to a bathroom in time.
Bph Medication That Can Lead To Sexual Problems
Some treatments for BPH can have sexual problems as side effects. Two types of pills, alpha blockers and 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors, have traditionally been used to treat BPH. Both have sex-related side effects.
If you take 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors, you may have side effects such as:
- ED
- Drop in libido
- Reduced semen release
Alpha blockers have been linked to problems with ejaculation. But two newer alpha blockers, alfuzosin and terazosin, may have fewer sex-related side effects. You can’t take pills for ED if you take certain alpha blockers, so always check with your doctor before taking any new medicine.
If you’re taking BPH medicines and having sexual problems, talk to your doctor. They may be able to change your medications.
Also Check: Prostate Cancer Osteoblastic Or Osteolytic
How To Do A Prostate Massage
If performing prostate massage for sexual purposes, it often helps to achieve a state of arousal first. Doing so moves the gland into a slightly upward and backward position as the penis becomes erect.
At that point:
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
Read Also: How Long Can You Take Lupron For Prostate Cancer
Enlarged Prostate Vs Sexual Activity
If viagra is an excellent way to soothe the symptoms of an enlarged prostate, does it help to enhance the erection as well? you may wonder. The answer is not that easy. First of all, severe symptoms of prostate enlargement cause permanent discomfort and, as a result, decrease the sex drive and sexual performance. Viagra may improve the erection, but some other medications that you take at the same time may cause problems with it. The issue with being sexually active is even more complicated in case of surgery, which may be needed in some situations. So, if you have prostate problems, it might be necessary to avoid sex for some time.
How Does Your Sex Life Affect Your Prostate Cancer Risk
Could how often you ejaculate be linked to prostate cancer? Find out what two studies and two experts say about sex and prostate cancer risk.
What if your chances of getting prostate cancer were somehow tied to how much sex you were having? Some studies have explored that very question specifically, whether theres a link between how often you ejaculate and your prostate cancer risk.
Read Also: Urinozinc Prostate Plus
Foods That Shrink The Prostate Gland
Benign prostatic hyperplasia becomes a common ailment as we age. It is an enlargement of the prostate gland and causes various urinary symptoms.
BPH is not cancer, but sometimes the prostate gland grows too much, and doctors decide to practice surgery. But if you have a slightly increased gland, you may need non-invasive treatment instead.
The normal prostate is made up of a given number of cells. In a prostate with BPH, the number of cells increases.
The exact cause is unknown, but aging and hormones are both critical factors. It is the primary cause of urinary symptoms in men, especially urinary retention and frequent urination.
Urination becomes frequent and sometimes difficult and wakes them up at night. Some patients may also have erectile dysfunction, but this symptom is usually due to other health conditions.
The majority of these problems can be solved by reducing the size of the prostate gland. But is it possible? How can you shrink the prostate gland with foods?
How Does Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia Affect Sexual Function
Benign prostatic hyperplasia increases by 7 times the risk of erectile dysfunction and severe urinary disorders. When BPH is treated successfully, erection is also improved. It is mainly Phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors that contribute significantly to the treatment of both ED and urinary problems. There is one PDE-5 inhibitor, tadalafil, that has been officially approved in the 5mg dose for the treatment of both ED and BPH.
Also Check: What Is Perineural Invasion In Prostate Cancer
Having Sex More Often Can Protect Your Prostate
A few studies conducted concurrently in various parts of the world have come to an interesting conclusion: frequent ejaculation is associated with lower incidence of some forms of prostate cancer.
One of these studies tracked 32,000 men from 1992, when they were in their 20s, to 2010. The researchers analyzed data from questionnaires regarding participants sexual health. They also reviewed their medical records and lab test results to double-check their prostate tumor diagnoses.
Ejaculation May Lower Prostate Cancer Risk
The findings, published in the April 7 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association, are based on data collected from nearly 30,000 predominately white men aged 46 to 81.
At the start of the study, men provided information on ejaculation frequency in their 20s, 40s, and in the previous year . Ejaculation frequency included sexual intercourse, masturbation, and nighttime ejaculations that can occur during sleep. The men were then monitored for eight years.
Researchers found most categories of ejaculation frequency were unrelated to prostate cancer risk. But when they looked at men in the highest category of ejaculation frequency, they found evidence of a protective effect.
“When you look at the data in a little bit more detail, you do see that not only is there not an increased risk, but there is potentially even the possibility of a slight decrease in risk with high ejaculation frequency,” says researcher Michael Leitzmann, MD, an investigator at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Md. Leitzmann conducted the research during a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard University.
Leitzmann says researchers suspected that ejaculation frequency might be a marker of a healthier, more active lifestyle. But when they accounted for diet, exercise, and other risk factors for prostate cancer, the link between frequent ejaculation and lower prostate cancer risk remained.
You May Like: How Long Can You Stay On Lupron For Prostate Cancer
Sex Hormones And Cancer Risk
Visalini Nair-Shalliker, the studys lead author and research fellow at Cancer Council New South Wales suggests that these findings may be due to a sex hormone called antigen that is somehow linked to sexual activity. She explains that the more sexually active a man was, the greater his risk of developing prostate cancer is according to the studys findings and this might have something to do with antigen.
However, the study fails to provide a causal link, meaning the researchers could not explain why exactly prostate cancer risk increases with the number of sexual partners or orgasm frequency. Nevertheless, these findings open the door to future research on finding the causes and other risk factors of this common cancer in men.
With A Massager Strap
If youre playing with sex toys, you can really mix it up by playing with the different vibration settings, as well as pressure and depth.
- Pressure. Controlling pressure when using a toy is easier, especially when youre playing solo. Try pressing the toy against the prostate using more or less pressure till you find your sweet spot.
- Depth. Depth is another area where toys win out since reaching can make it hard to go deep, if thats what you crave. Try different sized anal toys or get a longer one that you can insert as deep as your bottom desires.
- Vibrations. You can buy prostate massagers that offer up multiple speed and pulse settings. Play with the different settings to find your preference. Up the vibes as you get closer to orgasm.
- Sensation. Some prostate massagers have an attached external stimulator to give your perineum some sweet lovin while the other end penetrates. Who doesnt love a hard worker?
Want a little more?
If your partner has a penis, you can kick things up a notch with penis-in-anus penetration. Prostate stimulation for you, penile stimulation for them and a happy ending for you both.
Different positions can make reaching and pleasuring the prostate easier. These positions work for external and internal prostate stimulation, alone and with a partner.
Recommended Reading: Viagra And Enlarged Prostate