What is the cause of this condition and how may it be remedied?
Enlargement
of the Prostate Gland
Q. What is the cause of this condition and how may it
be remedied?
A. Men only are subject to this disease. The prostate
gland in men is a structure analogous to the womb or uterus in women. Chronic
enlargement of the prostate gland is a condition closely akin to the
development of fibroid tumors of the uterus. A temporary enlargement of the
prostate gland may be due to inflammation. In such cases increased activity of
the bowels, the avoidance of irritating condiments and flesh foods and copious
water drinking are measures which should not be neglected. A very hot sitz bath
or a hot hip and leg pack are the best means of affording relief from pain.
These applications may be repeated several times a day. After the pain subsides
colder baths may be used. A prolonged sitz bath at 80° to 70° F. continued for
ten or fifteen minutes is the best means of combating congestion which follows
acute inflammation. Chronic enlargement of the prostate gland is a very
serious condition quite common in men past middle life. It is, in fact one of
the gravest conditions to which men in advanced years are subject, and is the
cause of an enormous amount of suffering and not a few deaths. Nearly all of
this suffering and mortality might be saved if attention were given in time. As
the gland becomes enlarged it interferes
more and more with the discharge of urine
from the bladder. After a time a
considerable quantity of urine is retained,
and the so-called residual urine of the
bladder is never emptied. Occasionally the bladder becomes over-distended and there is continued leaking or
drippling of urine, giving the patient the impression that he is passing an excessive quantity
of urine. In a case of this sort encountered by the writer the bladder was found
to contain more than two quarts of very foul smelling urine as a result of the
retention. The urine readily undergoes decomposition
and inflammation of the bladder is set up. After a time the inflammation extends to the kidneys and when both of the kidneys become
involved death is likely to follow as a result
of uremic coma. In
the early stages simple enlargement of the prostate may generally be relieved by
the prolonged cold sitz bath, administered
daily for several weeks or months. The temperature of the bath should be 80° at first and gradually reduced
to 70° or even 60" F. The duration of the bath
should be ten to fifteen minutes. When the prostate becomes enlarged to such a degree that mechanical obstruction occurs and the bladder cannot empty itself of its contents
a catheter must
be used several times daily for temporary
relief.
As soon as the usually
present infection of the bladder can be
relieved a surgical operation for the
removal of the obstruction should be performed.
This operation was formerly attended by
great danger to life but improved methods which
have come into vogue within the last few years
render the operation practically safe, especially when
it can be performed before the kidneys have become
seriously involved. The greatest danger connected with the operation results from
the use of ether or chloroform. Fortunately this
danger may now be avoided thanks to the
improved methods of administering laughing gas, which may be safely employed.