How Often Do Men Need Prostate Exams?

Fertilizing ovaries to have children is accomplished through sperm from the testes, but it would never reach that far if not for the additional nourishing fluid provided by your prostate, which is located below your bladder and in front of your rectum. Your prostate’s muscles are also part of how ejaculate is pushed out of your body to make insemination possible, and your urethra runs through its center.

If you start experiencing symptoms that indicate problems with your prostate, especially as you reach middle age, then it might be time to get it examined. But how frequently should you get it checked? Let’s find out by looking at common conditions that affect this organ, the exam process itself, and when you should get the exam.

Residents of the Tinley Park, Rockford, and Olympia Fields, Illinois, or Munster, Indiana area looking for guidance on dealing with prostate problems can find help with Drs. William Campbell, Roy Bardwell, Yifei Du, Michael Favila, and their team at Health Solutions.

Common prostate problems

These conditions are the reasons getting your prostate checked is so important:

Prostatitis

Prostatitis is an inflammation of your prostate caused by a bacterial infection (the same bacteria that cause urinary tract infections, or UTIs) that also comes with painful urination, painful ejaculation, urinary urgency, and having to make up in the middle of the night to pee (nocturia). Chronic issues with prostatitis also cause  a weak stream of urine and lower abdominal pain, and acute versions of the illness cause fever, chills, and fatigue.

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH, or enlarged prostate)

The most frequent prostate illness, this is especially common in older men and happens when the prostate grows over time and narrows your urethra, leading to weak urine stream, nocturia, and frequent trips to the bathroom.

Prostate cancer

A form of cancer that acts similarly to BPH in its initial stages, but may also cause lower back pain. Men more likely to experience this prostate problem are those with risk factors like tobacco use, a family history of the illness, obesity, radiation exposure, and being over 50.

How prostate exams work

To determine the root of your prostate issues, we perform the following screenings:

Rectal exam

Since the prostate is located close to many other organs in your pelvic region, a simple way of confirming swelling or other issues with this organ is through a rectal exam. While your bent over standing or lying on your side with your knees toward your chest, we place a lubricated gloved finger in to press on it to check for abnormalities.

Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level tests

Your PSA is part of how you liquefy semen, and if your levels are higher than usual, it could indicate inflammation, infection, enlargement, or cancer in your prostate.

Evidence of unusual findings generally means more testing, but isn’t automatically a confirmation of one any of the three illnesses listed above.

When to start getting them and how often

Ideally, you should start getting your prostate checked at age 50, but it can be as early as 45 if you have a family history of problems. Black men are at higher risk for prostate issues, so they can also start at 45. 

How frequently you go for tests afterward depends on the results of the screenings. If an illness is diagnosed, we’ll guide you through the treatment options and how often you’ll need to visit. However, if levels are normal, you can schedule visits every couple of years. 

If levels are higher (PSA level of 2.5 ng/mL or more) than normal, annual visits are necessary unless other symptoms persist.

Don’t ignore the signs of prostate problems, and if you have signs of them, make an appointment with Drs. Campbell, Bardwell, Du, Favila and the team at Health Solutions today.