Prostatitis

Prostatitis is the name given to a set of symptoms that are thought to be caused by an inflammation of the prostate or problems with the nerves and muscles in the surrounding area. It may also be caused by an infection of the prostate, but this is rare. It is not cancer.

Types of prostatitis

There are four main types of prostatitis:

• chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS)
• acute bacterial prostatitis
• chronic bacterial prostatitis
• asymptomatic inflammatory prostatitis.

You can also read more about the signs and symptoms, tests and treatments for the different types of prostatitis.

Chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS)

CPPS is the most common type of prostatitis – around 9 out of every 10 men with prostatitis have it. You might also hear it called chronic non-bacterial prostatitis, chronic abacterial prostatitis or prostate pain syndrome. Chronic means long-lasting.

Men with CPPS usually have symptoms for three months or longer. Even after treatment, you may still have prostatitis for a long time. It might come and go, causing occasional episodes of severe pain, sometimes known as flare-ups.

What causes it?

Nobody knows for certain what causes CPPS. Unlike other types of prostatitis it isn’t usually caused by a bacterial infection. There could be a number of causes, which makes it difficult to diagnose and treat.

There are also a number of things that might trigger it, including:

• urine getting into the prostate
• previous infections in or around the prostate
• an infection that doesn’t show up in tests
• problems with nerves pathway, so that they send pain signals to the brain even when there’s nothing physically wrong
• stress, anxiety or depression
• problems with the pelvic floor muscles (the muscles that support your bladder and bowel and help to control urination).

Some research shows a link between stress, anxiety and depression and CPPS. But this doesn’t mean that CPPS is all in your head. If you’re feeling stressed or depressed, this may cause physical symptoms that trigger CPPS, or make symptoms worse.

There’s some evidence that CPPS may be linked to other conditions such as chronic fatigue syndrome and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). IBS causes bowel problems such as bloating and diarrhoea, while chronic fatigue syndrome causes long-term severe tiredness. Some men with CPPS have symptoms of these conditions too.

There’s also some evidence that in a small number of men, CPPS may be caused by a sexually transmitted infection. But we need more research to know for sure.

You can read more about the symptoms of CPPS, the test used to diagnose it, and the treatments available.

Acute bacterial prostatitis

Acute bacterial prostatitis is an infection of the prostate that is caused by bacteria. Acute means that the symptoms develop very quickly. It isn’t common, but it can be serious and may need treating in hospital.

What causes it?

Acute bacterial prostatitis can develop when certain types of bacteria get into your prostate, causing it to become infected.

Bacteria that normally live in your bowel may spread to the tip of your penis and to the urethra (the tube you urinate through). From here, the bacteria might reach your prostate. Bacteria can also spread to your prostate from your bladder or bloodstream.

Acute bacterial prostatitis can happen if:

• you have a urine infection
• you’ve had difficulty emptying your bladder
• you’ve had a prostate biopsy
• you regularly use a thin tube called a catheter to drain urine from your bladder.

You can read more about the symptoms of acute bacterial prostatitis, the test used to diagnose it, and the treatments available.

Chronic bacterial prostatitis

Chronic bacterial prostatitis is an infection of the prostate that can last for a long time – at least three months. Chronic means that it is long-lasting. It tends to come and go, causing episodes or flare-ups. It isn’t common.

What causes it?

Chronic bacterial prostatitis is caused by a bacterial infection. It tends to affect men who’ve had lots of urine infections or an inflamed urethra (urethritis) in the past, or who have a damaged or narrow urethra (a stricture). Each episode tends to be caused by the same bacteria, which also cause the urine infections.

It can develop from acute bacterial prostatitis if antibiotics don’t get rid of all the bacteria. This could be because the bacteria were resistant to the antibiotics or because the treatment was stopped too early.

You can read more about the symptoms of chronic bacterial prostatitis, the test used to diagnose it, and the treatments available.

Asymptomatic inflammatory prostatitis

This is prostatitis that doesn’t have any symptoms – the word asymptomatic means there are no symptoms. It is usually detected by chance when you’re having tests for other conditions, such as enlarged prostate.

You can read more about the symptoms of asymptomatic inflammatory prostatitis, the test used to diagnose it, and the treatments available.

References and reviewers

Last updated December 2024 | To be reviewed December 2027