Subject: sci.med.prostate.prostatitis FAQ 1/1
Supersedes: <medicine/prostatitis-faq/part1_815685949@rtfm.mit.edu>
Date: 7 Dec 1995 19:08:13 GMT
X-Last-Updated: 1995/10/16

Posting-Frequency: monthly

alt.support.prostate.prostatitis FAQ

1.  About alt.support.prostate.prostatitis and other sources of
prostatitis information on the Internet
2.  About this FAQ
3.  What is prostatitis?
4.  What are the symptoms of prostatitis?
5.  How is prostatitis distinguished from prostate cancer and BPH?
6.  How common is prostatitis?
7.  Are there different kinds of prostatitis?
8.  What causes prostatitis?
9.  Can prostatitis be cured?
10. What can be done to alleviate symptoms?
11. Why is this newsgroup necessary?
12. How can we work towards a cure?
Appendix.
  

1.  About alt.support.prostate.prostatitis and other sources of
prostatitis information on the Internet

The newsgroup alt.support.prostate.prostatitis was founded in the
summer of 1994 as a forum for those interested in the causes and
treatment of prostatitis.  Besides that, it has become a center for
discussion of political and public awareness actions we can take
towards finding cures for chronic prostatitis. 

Alt.support.prostate.prostatitis is not intended for the discussion
of prostate cancer or benign prostate hypertrophy (BPH) (see
section 3).  Prostate cancer is discussed in the group
alt.support.cancer.prostate.  Because of difficulties in accessing
"alt." hierarchy newsgroups from some sites, three new newsgroups--
sci.med.prostate.bph, sci.med.prostate.cancer, and
sci.med.prostate.prostatitis--received approval in early October
1995, and are in the process of forming.  Those interested in
discussing other medical topics should use the sci.med newsgroup or
the appropriate alt.support newsgroup. 

Prostate problems of all kinds are also discussed through the
PROSTATE electronic mailing list.  To subscribe to PROSTATE, use
electronic mail to send the message:

To: listserv@sjuvm.stjohns.edu
Subject: (does not matter)
Message: "subscribe prostate (your-first-name your-last-name)"

New subscribers to PROSTATE are automatically put into digest mode
to reduce the number of new messages received each day.  New
subscribers receive a welcome message explaining different options
for managing your subscription.  Subscribers can choose to receive
copies of this FAQ whenever it is updated.

The Prostatitis Foundation maintains a worldwide web site at:
http://www.prostate.org.  A copy of this FAQ is also posted
there.  

2.  About this FAQ

An initial draft of this FAQ was prepared by John Koch in November
1994.  This FAQ is not an official statement of policy, and even
less a statement of absolute truth.  It is meant simply to orient
newcomers.

This FAQ will be posted to alt.support.prostate.prostatitis,
news.answers, alt.answers, and sci.med every 30 days.  It is also
available through the Prostate electronic mailing list and the
Prostatitis Foundation worldwide web page (see section 1).       

Corrections and amplifications to this FAQ should be sent to
johnnk@aol.com.  Questions about statements made in the FAQ are
welcome,  but are likely to be more productive if posted to
alt.support.prostate.prostatitis for discussion by the group. 

This FAQ was last updated Oct. 15, 1995.

3.  What is prostatitis?

The prostate is part of male sexual anatomy.  It is a walnut-sized
gland which surrounds part of the urethra, the "tube" that carries
urine from the bladder to the penis.  At the top of the prostate is
the prostatic sphincter and at the bottom is the urethral
sphincter.  During ejaculation, the prostate provides part of the
seminal fluid.  

There are three bad things which can happen to the prostate:

--prostate cancer

--benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH), which is an increase in size
of the prostate, typically occurring in later middle age

--prostatitis, which is an inflammation of the prostate or a pain
in the prostate similar to that caused by an inflammation (see
section 7).

4.  What are the symptoms of prostatitis?

There are a variety of symptoms, but most of them involve urinary
problems and/or pain in the region of the prostate.

Symptoms can include:
     pain in the perineum (the area between the anus and the base
          of the penis), or in the testicles, penis, lower stomach
          or lower back
     pain when urinating
     frequent urination
     a feeling of urgency when the bladder is not full
     difficulty in starting urination
     getting up frequently during the night to urinate
     a narrowed or split urine stream
     pain during or after ejaculation

Symptoms may be continual or recurrent.
