![]() ![]() Antihistamines and decongestants can cause problems for some. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about prescription or over-the-counter medications that may be contributing to your BPH symptoms.MEDICATION USE: Alter use of medications that could worsen urinary symptoms. Men with mild to moderate symptoms often find that the changes in fluid intake, medication use, and bladder habits listed below can noticeably relieve BPH's bothersome effects. Living with BPH: A toolbox for managing urinary symptomsīPH progresses slowly, so most men can decide for themselves if and when they would like to consider medication or surgery. The IPSS test cuts through the subjectivity with this additional question: "If you were to spend the rest of your life with your urinary condition just the way it is now, how would you feel about that?" If the answer is, "I could live with it," then holding off on drug therapy or surgery might be best for you.īut not taking medication or having surgery doesn't mean "do nothing." It should include strategies to lessen symptoms or make them easier to cope with. Two men can have the same symptom score, and one can tolerate it just fine but the other can't. Above a score of 8 there is actually a spectrum of bother. Typically, men who score 8 and above are more likely to think their condition needs treatment, but it varies from man to man. It's a seven-item questionnaire about typical BPH symptoms that provides a score from 0 to 35. How bothersome is it?ĭoctors use the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) to measure how frequent a man's symptoms are. The question that should drive that decision is this: How much do your symptoms bother you? Whether it is getting in the way of doing the things you want to do should be the primary driver of treatment. This can cause problems like the need for more frequent visits to the bathroom and difficulty fully emptying the bladder.įor some men, the symptoms of BPH don't demand immediate treatment. ![]() As the bladder works against the restriction, its muscular walls thicken. The urethra-the tube that conveys urine from the bladder to outside the body-passes right through the prostate, so it doesn't take much prostate growth to make urination difficult. In many men, the prostate gland may begin to grow larger over time.
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