Why do men have a prostate?
The prostate gland in an adult male is normally the size of walnut. It lies beneath the bladder and surrounds the lower part of the urethra. The only function the prostate is known to have is to produce a secretion. During ejaculation this secretion empties out into the vas deferens and urethra, together with fluid from the seminal vesicles and sperm from the testes. This secretion increases the motility of sperm and is needed for fertilisation to occur.
Why does the prostate gland grow?
Currently we do not know why the prostate enlarges, but hormones are involved. It is not unusual for the prostate to grow to twice its original size. The prostate gland surrounds the urethra and is located just below the bladder neck. When the prostate enlarges it squeezes the urethra. This can give sensations of an urgent need to urinate, while also making it more difficult to urinate. The enlarged prostate does not just compress the urethra. It also narrows the passage the urine has to flow through, making it more difficult to empty the bladder. The problem can become unbearable for some men. Approximately 20-25 percent of all men need some type of treatment for their problem.
What is benign prostate enlargement/BPH?
Every second man over the age of 50 is affected by benign prostate enlargement, which is also called benign prostatic hyperplasia or BPH for short. When men reach their 40s the cells of the prostate begin to change. Problems are commonly noticed when men are in their 50s. Approximately every second man over the age of 50 and four out of five men over the age of 80 have prostate problems.
Nodules are formed, which in turn may lead to the prostate gland enlarging. Sometimes these changes take a long time to happen and the nodules never grow larger than microscopically small. In these cases the changes to the prostate go unnoticed. If the prostate grows large it can often compress the urethra and make it difficult to urinate. The prostate gland surrounds the urethra.
There is no risk of benign enlargement of the prostate developing into prostate cancer.
The classic symptoms “awake at night – hunting toilets during the day”, i.e. sleep is interrupted by having to get up to visit the bathroom and desperate urges to urinate mean that it is necessary to know where the next toilet can be found in case of emergency. This will have a negative effect on quality of life. It is also important for partners of sufferers, since it also have negative affects their life quality. Other typical symptoms are that it takes time to start the urine flow, residual drops may follow urination, or it may feel that the bladder has not emptied completely.