Prostate Health Questions and Answers

More than 90% of prostate-related problems in clinical practice (including inflammation, hyperplasia, and occasional calcification) are preventable and controllable and will not become malignant. There is no need to frighten yourself by blindly searching for online guides, and there is no need to pay the IQ tax by buying so-called "miraculous gland-protecting drugs".

Let’s talk about a case I just encountered last week. A 28-year-old Internet programmer worked on a project for a week. He sat for more than 12 hours a day and ate at his workstation. As a result, he suddenly started urinating frequently and got up 4 times a night. He also had some perineal pain when urinating. After searching for a long time, he thought he had chronic prostatitis that could not be cured. He was even worried that it would affect the future of having children, so he came to the clinic crying. After checking the urine routine and prostate ultrasound, nothing was wrong. It was just prostate congestion caused by long-term sitting. I asked him to stand up to get a glass of water and walk two steps every 40 minutes after sitting. I changed the workstation cushion to a hollow pressure-reducing cushion. Don't hold back urine and drink more warm water. After two weeks, I checked again and found that all symptoms had disappeared.

Oh, by the way, the first thing many people want to ask is "Will prostatitis affect sexual function?" ” There are actually different views on this in the academic community. The traditional view is that chronic inflammation may be stimulated repeatedly for a long time, which may lower the ejaculation threshold or cause pelvic pain and affect the sexual intercourse experience. ； However, the latest Chinese Urology Disease Diagnosis and Treatment Guidelines clearly mention that 95% of prostatitis-related sexual dysfunctions are essentially caused by psychological anxiety - you always think about your "prostate problem", which will inevitably lead to psychological burden when having sex, and it is easy to have problems. When I meet this type of patient, I usually tell them not to take the disease seriously and to have a regular schedule. Most of them can get better without taking medicine.

There are also many people who panic when they see the words "prostate calcification" on the physical examination report, thinking that it is a precancerous lesion. To put it bluntly, this thing is just like the scar left after you cut a cut on your hand. Most of them are calcium deposits left after the prostate has been slightly inflamed and healed. As long as there are no symptoms such as frequent urination, urgent urination, and perineal pain, you don't need to worry about it at all. Just get a prostate ultrasound for an annual physical examination. There is really no need to look for some "stone-melting" folk remedies, which will hurt the body in vain.

Men in their fifties or sixties often pull me and ask, do I need surgery for my prostate hyperplasia? This actually depends on the situation. The treatment styles of different doctors do differ: Conservative doctors will think that as long as you do not urinate more than twice at night and there is no obvious effort to urinate, you can just take some drugs such as tamsulosin to control it without getting a knife. ； A more radical surgeon may suggest that patients whose growth has reached a certain size and who have already experienced urinary retention would be more worry-free by having surgery as early as possible to avoid repeated urinary catheter insertion in the future. I usually give patients a very intuitive judgment standard: if you get up more than three times at night, have to wait half a minute to urinate every time, have a urine line as thin as a watering can for watering flowers, and even wet your underwear occasionally, then it is not too late to consider surgery. If it is not to this extent, you can observe it first.

Oh, by the way, there’s another question that everyone is too embarrassed to ask: Will masturbation cause prostatitis? There are polarizing opinions on the Internet. Some say that one drop of semen and ten drops of blood will cause prostatitis as long as you wash it with your hands. ； Or say it has no impact at all and just make it casually. In fact, objectively speaking, regular semen ejaculation (1-2 times a week) can promote the renewal of prostate fluid, which is also beneficial to the recovery of inflammation. ； On the contrary, there are two extreme situations that are likely to cause problems: either if you hold it in for a long time without excreting it, the prostatic fluid will accumulate and easily breed bacteria. ； Either frequent ejaculation in a short period of time and repeated congestion of the prostate can easily induce inflammation. There's really no need to feel guilty about this, just do it in moderation.

Many people come to me and ask me what they can eat to replenish their prostate, and what imported lycopene and pumpkin seed oil they can sell for hundreds of dollars a bottle. I usually tell them that if you first change the three bad habits that hurt the prostate the most: sitting for a long time, holding in your urine, and drinking alcohol, it will be more effective than taking 10 bottles of health supplements. If you really need to supplement, eat two more raw tomatoes on a daily basis. The lycopene in them is enough. If you are over 50 years old, have a PSA (prostate specific antigen) physical examination every year. This is the most reliable indicator of prostate cancer and is more effective than any supplement you take.

Oh, and there’s the “prostate care” that has been popular for a long time. Many health clubs recommend it, saying it can massage and detoxify. Here I would like to remind everyone: Prostate massage in regular hospitals is a treatment method for patients with chronic bacterial prostatitis. The doctor must wear finger cots to perform the operation from the rectum. The intensity and position are very particular. ； If you go to an irregular place and press it randomly, it may cause you pain for several days at least, or it may pierce the rectal mucosa or even spread the inflammation to other places. It is completely a waste of money.

In fact, the prostate is just like your knees. It will get tired easily if you use it too much. You can usually get better after taking a rest. If you really feel uncomfortable, go to a regular hospital for a urine routine and prostate ultrasound. For a few dozen yuan, most problems can be checked out. Don't scare yourself, and don't treat it randomly. It's that simple.