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Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia: Consequences

In recent years, private medical practices have significantly expanded the list of symptoms supposedly indicating benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). In some cases, this list has grown to the size of a medium newspaper article. However, the majority of these symptoms are not specific to BPH and often become noticeable only during examinations for entirely different conditions. Common signs include frequent urination, painful urination, weak urine stream, feeling of incomplete bladder emptying, and nocturia.

A reliable diagnosis of benign prostatic hyperplasia cannot be based on visible signs alone. Accurate assessment is achieved through objective methods such as transrectal ultrasound of the prostate (TRUS), laboratory blood tests, and measurement of prostate-specific antigen (PSA). Visiting a urology clinic becomes essential in two situations: after the age of forty, or when persistent and abnormal changes appear in urinary function, including chronic urinary retention or recurring urinary tract infections.

Preparation for Ultrasound (TRUS) and a Common Diagnostic Error

Some specialists advise patients to prepare for prostate ultrasound or TRUS by drinking a large volume of water in order to completely fill the bladder. This recommendation is often justified as a way to obtain more accurate diagnostic data. In reality, such preparation can lead to vessel compression around the bladder, impaired blood circulation, spasm of smooth muscle tissue, and incomplete bladder emptying—even in individuals without prostate disease.

As a result, diagnostic findings may falsely suggest a near-critical condition, sometimes leading to alarming conclusions about the need for urgent surgical intervention or catheterization. In the early stages of benign prostatic hyperplasia, when symptoms are just beginning to appear, this approach is not only unreasonable but professionally unacceptable. What is required in such cases is not surgery, but a reassessment of the specialist’s competence and the search for a more qualified medical opinion.

If TRUS is performed correctly, it should consist of two distinct stages: first, measuring the size, volume, or weight of the prostate gland; second, determining the amount of residual urine remaining in the bladder after urination, which is a critical step in BPH diagnostics.

The Relationship Between Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia and Cardiovascular Health

My intention is not to cause fear. After analyzing a large body of medical literature on prostate diseases, I noticed a significant gap: the lack of meaningful discussion about the connection between BPH and cardiovascular disorders. Repeated observations and long-term practical experience confirm that this relationship exists and cannot be ignored.

Many people prefer not to know about their illnesses or how different conditions influence one another. Fear is often the reason—there is a belief that understanding the problem will only worsen one’s psychological state. In reality, awareness and proper management become critical long before apathy or hopelessness sets in. Untreated imbalances may lead to arterial hypertension, hypotension, or functional heart disorders. If irreversible changes have not occurred, these conditions can be corrected with competent diagnostics, systematic monitoring, and structured lifestyle adjustments.

Complications are frequently triggered by acute infections such as influenza or tonsillitis, which place prolonged strain on the cardiovascular system. Recovery remains possible when the underlying mechanisms are addressed correctly.

Another common example involves people with hypertension who are sensitive to weather changes. Atmospheric pressure fluctuations can provoke changes in blood pressure, leading to prostate spasms. The greater the pressure variation, the stronger the compression effect. By understanding personal susceptibility, adjusting diet, using bladder training exercises, and following a structured recovery method, painful symptoms can be reduced and the risk of acute urinary retention, recurrent urinary infections, and other complications can be eliminated.

Acute Urinary Retention — Prevention and First Aid

It is crucial to remember that, without active management of the disease or with ineffective treatment, the same spasm will eventually affect the prostate and block the urethra, making urination impossible. If you are not actively managing your health, you must know in advance who can help and where, should catheterization be needed. This can become an urgent problem with serious consequences, especially if you live far from medical facilities. Not every doctor is skilled in this procedure.

Spasms cannot be predicted (there are many causes), but they often occur at inconvenient times: early in the morning (likely due to partial dehydration) or near midnight (for example, after a heavy dinner and inactivity). Before catheterization, remain calm, avoid food and drinks, and breathe slowly, deeply, and in fresh air. Regular monitoring of urinary flow, awareness of residual urine levels, and maintaining proper hydration are essential for prevention.

Surgical Intervention: Indications, Risks, and Reality

Many doctors claim that removal of BPH (TURP) is inevitable and should ideally be performed as early as possible in adulthood. Perhaps they are tempted to predict outcomes, especially when no one challenges them. Such advice acknowledges the complexity and unpredictability of the procedure.

Surgery involves high temperatures, which destroy tissue. The remaining prostate and surrounding tissues undergo structural changes, disrupting local metabolism and blood circulation. Potential complications include loss of function, incontinence, and a likely reduction in sexual potency.

The decision to undergo surgery must be yours. It should be considered carefully—not superficially, intuitively, or under the influence of advertising. Understand that any new complications will affect only you. Assess your capabilities: physical fitness, readiness for therapeutic exercise, adherence to a proper diet, ability to monitor your health, and elimination of harmful habits (if any).

Surgery Is Not a Cure

Undergoing surgery to remove BPH does not mean you are healthy, because the procedure only removes the consequence, not the cause. Your endocrine and cardiovascular systems continue to function as before, without positive changes. The disease persists and continues to progress. Therefore, it is crucial to follow basic self-care rules, maintain a healthy diet, and engage in moderate physical activity.

Extreme Measures

Surgical interventions, such as transvesical adenomectomy or transurethral resection, are radical measures. Prostate removal is an extreme, last-resort procedure, with unpredictable consequences. Yet it is often promoted as a “gold standard,” a slogan repeated across numerous medical websites. Hearing such claims, one cannot help but conclude: some individuals in white coats, contrary to the Hippocratic Oath, are more interested in taking money than preserving health. Surgery itself is one of the most effective ways to achieve this. After the procedure, patients are usually discharged without guidance on lifestyle or follow-up care. Private practitioners often operate under an unspoken motto: “There are no former patients!”

Prostate Stenting and Embolization

Official medicine now offers prostate stenting, which involves placing a coil in the prostate canal. This can give patients a false sense of security. However, the body sends a very different message: “Many of your habits are uncomfortable for me, primarily your ignorance and inactivity! This is why you have BPH. Correct your mistakes before it’s too late!” Instead, patients are told: “Pay money, and we will temporarily relieve your problems with a trick called prostate stenting.”

The canal is forcibly widened, and over time, this may unexpectedly lead to prostate cancer. Patients are not informed that such procedures require costly medications afterward or warned about inevitable side effects. To me, this resembles experiments on silent lab animals. Embolization of BPH is similarly unpredictable.

Folk Medicine and Unsafe “Treatments”

Folk healers often attempt to reduce painful BPH symptoms using traditional remedies. One popular method involves administering medications via the anus, supposedly delivering them more directly to the prostate. What is actually treated in this way is unclear, but painful disruption of rectal microflora, often with lasting consequences, is almost guaranteed—especially if the remedies are not oil-based.

Sunbathing, Heat Therapy, and Physiotherapy

Sunbathing is recommended to replenish vitamin D. However, I have not seen positive results from this approach for BPH. Sun exposure can cause dehydration, a dangerous and unpredictable factor. Radiation exposure also carries risks. For those who maintain a healthy lifestyle, daily outdoor activity provides sufficient sunlight. I personally tried this method while resting by the sea. Despite moderation, I experienced problems, which is why I do not recommend sunbathing.

Heat therapy should be approached with caution. It can relieve symptoms of chronic prostatitis and BPH but is strictly contraindicated for malignant tumors. The principle is that heat thins the blood, improves microcirculation in the prostate and surrounding tissues, and provides a mild resolving effect. In some cases, it can temporarily reduce pain. Temperature increases should be minimal—1–2 degrees above body temperature—and not prolonged. Excessive heat or duration may cause swelling, spasms, or no relief. This physiotherapy is suitable only for minor prostate enlargement, where improving circulation is possible. Historically, simple, widely available materials with good heat retention—such as sand, ozokerite, clay, paraffin, and today an electric heating pad with a regulator—have been used.

Human greed changes everything. Fraudsters, both from outside and private practices, exploit the simplicity of these methods. They deceive patients, take their money, and promote expensive procedures on devices no more effective than a warm compress (soon likely marketed as “nanotechnology”). Some even persuade people to set up home “mini clinics” and sell worthless equipment at exorbitant prices, as I have discussed in other articles.

A Word About the “Golden Mean”

Doctors emphasize the benefits of sexual activity. Medical Qigong, yoga, and other Eastern practices sometimes describe BPH as arising from excessive sexual activity. Both perspectives are valid. Active sexual activity increases heart rate (the higher, the better), enhancing blood circulation and emptying the prostate. This helps relieve periprostatic muscle spasm. Excessive activity, however, prevents full recovery, causing congestion and harm. Moderation, or the “golden mean,” is essential.

If the prostate is inflamed, rest is required above all else.

Consequences of Extreme Health Practices

This section is aimed at those engaging in extreme health practices: plunging into ice-cold water, which can cause vascular spasm and shock without heart monitoring; prolonged or dry fasting; and other naturopathic methods. Effects of such methods are twofold: temporary relief (usually externally visible) and hidden, irreversible harm. People absorbed in these practices often refuse to see negative consequences objectively, making rational discussion extremely difficult.

First, if you have not yet tried such “epic” practices, calmly and thoroughly examine their meaning. Ask yourself: What is BPH? How can it be treated safely? Answer these questions with reason and evidence. There is enough information available today. Without active mental engagement and verified knowledge, no serious diagnosis can be properly managed. Once you investigate, the desire for extreme methods will fade naturally.

Second, if you have already tried such practices and achieved only minor, short-term improvement—or none at all—assess your body before moving to another treatment. Serious side effects may appear gradually, and medical examination will help detect them early. This way, you will know—frankly—whether to hold accountable those who promoted these methods or yourself (the latter is usually wiser).

With respect, Author, Gennadiy Plotyan.

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