Understanding Enlarged Prostate: Symptoms, Causes, and When to See a Doctor

While an enlarged prostate can certainly seem alarming, most men over the age of 50 experience this issue, and it doesn’t mean that you have prostate cancer. 

As we age, our bodies undergo changes that can affect various aspects of our health and wellness. For men, part of this aging process can include an enlarged prostate, medically known as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). 

Although an enlarged prostate is part of aging for most men, Charles Stone, MD, and the rest of our men’s health team at HealthStone Primary Care Partners in Hollywood, Florida, want you to know that healthcare services are available to reduce the severity of your symptoms.

This month’s blog examines the exact causes of BPH and identifies when symptoms indicate the need for more focused care from our team. 

Causes and symptoms of benign prostatic enlargement 

Your prostate is a walnut-sized gland located between your bladder and rectum. The gland surrounds your urethra, the tube that carries urine out of your body.  

The exact cause of BPH isn’t always clear. While some men’s prostates grow significantly in size, others hardly increase at all. 

However, what may influence BPH is exposure to a hormone called dihydrotestosterone. As you age, prostate cells may respond to this naturally produced hormone and begin to multiply, leading to an enlarged prostate gland. 

Even though this prostate cell growth isn’t cancerous, it can lead to problems with urination since the larger prostate size can eventually compress the urethra. 

This may lead to:

• Slowed urinary flow
• Difficulty urinating 
• Urinary incontinence 
• Frequent nighttime urination (nocturia)
• Urinary stream that starts and stops
• Pain while urinating 
• Inability to empty your bladder

Without treatment, BPH can lead to chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs), bladder stones, and kidney damage. 

When to see a doctor

At HealthStone Primary Care Partners, we recommend you schedule an appointment whenever you're concerned about your health. Otherwise, if you’re seeing us for routine men’s health exams, we may discuss signs and symptoms of BPH during your screenings.

We also recommend scheduling a visit any time your urinary habits change (i.e., frequent nighttime urination) or you develop pain with urination or other concerning symptoms. Once we’ve diagnosed the underlying cause of your discomfort, we can design a personalized treatment strategy.

How is an enlarged prostate treated?

If your BPH symptoms are mild, we may recommend a strategy of “watchful waiting.” This involves regularly scheduled monitoring appointments to ensure the gland’s size does not increase beyond comfortable levels.  

Lifestyle modifications can be beneficial for managing mild symptoms and reducing the risk of them worsening in severity. This typically involves reducing your fluid intake before bed, limiting caffeine and alcohol consumption, and avoiding the use of antihistamines and decongestants.

For moderate symptoms, we can prescribe medications that relax the muscles in your prostate to decrease the tension on your urethra. Other prescription medications can reduce the amount of dihydrotestosterone in your body, which reduces your prostate size as a result. 

In more severe cases, we may recommend referral for a specialty procedure, such as minimally invasive UroLift, to ease compression on the urethra. 

See our team for expert-level men’s health care

Don’t ignore your prostate health. If you’ve noticed signs of an enlarged prostate, see our team for expert and compassionate care. After an assessment, we can create a treatment plan that works best for you.

Schedule a men’s health appointment by calling HealthStone Primary Care Partners today or using our online booking feature.