Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia
The fact is, though, that about half of all men with an enlarged prostate develop symptoms which are oftentimes bothersome and cause problems in daily activities. The most common symptoms are:
- Frequent urination
- Urgency or inability to suppress the need to urinate
- Intermittent urination, where the stream is interrupted
- Nighttime urination, where the patient wakes up at night to void
- Weak urinary stream while voiding
- Hesitancy, which is the difficulty of getting the urine stream going
- Having to strain and push to get the stream going and maintaining the stream
The American Urological Association (AUA) has developed a questionnaire consisting of seven self-administered questions. The answers are scored from 0 to 5 points and the total score runs from 0 to 35 points. You can take the “prostate self-test” and determine whether you might have BPH. As long as you score under 8 points, it is not very likely that you have a problem. If you score more points you may want to talk to your doctor about it.
The following questionnaire was developed by the American Urological Association (AUA) to help men evaluate the severity of their symptoms from BPH. This self-administered test can help determine which treatment is needed, if any. Symptoms are classified as mild (1 to 7), moderate (8 to 19), or severe (20 to 35). Generally, no treatment is needed if symptoms are mild; moderate symptoms usually call for some form of treatment; and severe symptoms most often indicate that surgery is necessary.
Prostate Self Test
Figure 4. Complications from BPH
Aside from causing such symptoms and problems with urination, BPH can also cause other problems in your urinary tract, some of which are shown in Figure 4.
The enlarging prostate, blocking the urine flow, can lead to an unhealthy thickening of the bladder wall called trabeculation, formation of so-called diverticula or outpouchings of the bladder wall due to pressure, blockage and obstruction of the ureter tube and the kidneys, as well as formation of stones in the bladder, infection and even bleeding from the bladder. Finally, it may create a situation where it becomes impossible to urinate at all, which is called acute urinary retention and is an emergency requiring a visit to the doctor or emergency room.
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More information:
The Prostate
Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia
Diagnostic Evaluation
Treatment
Return to Prostate Disease Center
For more information about the Department of Urology, contact:
Phone: 214-648-4765, FAX: 214-648-4789
Mailing Address: 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., J8.148, Dallas, TX 75390-9110
