Prostate disease drugs, this is what you should know

Prostate disease can cause discomfort during activities such as frequent urination, urine that does not come out, weak urine flow, and pain when urinating or after ejaculation. In order not to continue to interfere with daily activities, you must immediately take medication to overcome the condition. So, what are the drugs that can be taken to relieve symptoms of prostate disease?

The type of prostate drug that doctors often prescribe

If symptoms are not severe, your doctor may recommend regular check-ups for a while before deciding you should seek medical treatment.

The most common form of medical care to treat prostate problems involves antibiotics, alpha blockers, and 5-alpha reductase inhibitors.

1. Antibiotic drugs

Antibiotics will be given by the doctor when the patient is suffering from bacterial prostatitis. Antibiotic drugs aim to kill bacteria that attack the prostate.

Some types of antibiotic drugs that may be used are trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, doxycycline, ciprofloxacin, norfloxacin, and ofloxin.

Patients have to follow this treatment for several weeks. If you have a recurrent type of prostatitis, treatment with antibiotics can last up to six months.

2. Medicine alpha-blockers

In fact, alpha-blockers more commonly used as a drug for hypertension. Alpha-blockers It helps reduce blood pressure by preventing the hormone norepinephrine from tightening the muscles in the walls of arteries and veins.

The hormone norepinephrine is a natural hormone that can increase blood pressure levels by constricting blood vessels. This will keep the blood vessels open and allow the blood to flow smoothly.

Due alpha-blockers also relaxes other muscles throughout the body, this type of drug can also help improve urine flow in patients with prostate disease. Here are the types that doctors often prescribe.

Tamsulosin

Tamsulosin is a type of prostate disease drug alpha-blockers which can relax the muscles in the prostate and bladder neck. It makes it easier for you to urinate and helps relieve other symptoms of an enlarged prostate, such as a weak urine flow and suppressing the urge to urinate back and forth.

The dose of tamsulosin for prostate drugs is generally started with 0.4 mg once a day. For patients who show no symptom improvement after taking the 0.4 mg dose after 2 to 4 weeks, the drug dose may be increased to 0.8 mg once daily.

Some of the side effects of tamsulosin are usually mild. Your doctor may be able to help prevent or reduce these side effects, but consult your doctor if any of the following side effects persist.

Doxazosin

Doxazosin is also a drug that is often prescribed to treat prostate disease, especially benign prostate enlargement (BPH). Similar to tamsulosin, doxazosin can help relax the muscles around the bladder so that it will reduce the pain felt by the patient.

Doxazosin tablets can be taken before or after meals once a day, in the morning or at night. The dosage is adjusted according to the patient's condition. Usually the doctor will start with a low dose which will be increased gradually.

In addition to its use which is not more than two weeks, taking this drug must also be in accordance with the doctor's direction. If you want to stop the treatment, it's better to consult immediately first.

Alfuzosin

Alfuzosin works by relaxing the prostate muscle which in turn will make urine flow smoother. Alfuzosin has a way of working long-acting, meaning this drug takes longer to treat the symptoms of prostate disease, but the effects can last longer.

Alfuzosin medicine should be taken after meals. The dose required is usually 10 mg and taken once a day. However, the dose can be different for each patient. Do not stop medication without the doctor knowing.

This medicine may make you dizzy or less alert after taking it. Therefore, you should not do things that require a high level of concentration such as driving if you are taking alfuzosin.

Silodosin

Silodosin is also often used as a drug to treat the painful symptoms of urination when you have prostate disease. Silodosin is generally a capsule and must be taken after meals once a day.

Sometimes silodosin is taken with food. The recommended daily dose is 4-8 mg per day, but the dosage will be adjusted according to the patient's circumstances.

Similar to the previous drug, silodosin can give the effect of dizziness and drowsiness so that those of you who take it are advised not to do dangerous activities and need full concentration.

3. Medication 5-alpha reductase inhibitor

This drug is usually given as part of the treatment of BPH (benign prostate enlargement) which functions to block hormones that can make the prostate enlarge. Two types of drugs that are often given are finasteride and dutasteride.

Finasteride

Finasteride blocks an enzyme named 5-alpha-reductase which can convert testosterone into another hormone that triggers prostate growth or hair loss in men. Finasteride will help increase testosterone levels as well as reduce prostate size.

In effect, this drug can also increase hair growth on the head. Unfortunately, this effect will only last as long as treatment. When you stop taking the medicine, hair can fall back.

Sometimes, finasteride is also combined with drugs alpha-blockers a type of doxazosin to treat a large prostate enlargement (BPH). The dose must be determined by your doctor, but the recommended dose is usually 5 mg taken once a day.

Dutasteride

Dutasteride is used to treat an enlarged prostate, which works to increase urine flow and also minimize your need for prostate surgery in the future.

These drugs prevent the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in the body. DHT is known to be involved in the development of BPH disease.

The recommended dose of Avodart is one 0.5 mg capsule taken once a day. If prescribed with tamsulosin as a combined therapy, dustateride should be taken in one 0.5 mg capsule and 0.4 mg tamsulosin, each taken once a day.

Dutasteride capsules should be swallowed whole, not chewed or opened, because contact with the contents of the capsules can cause throat irritation. Dustateride can be taken with or without food.

Some of the dustateride side effects may not require medical attention. As your body gets used to the medicine, the side effects may disappear. If any of the side effects such as abnormal ejaculation, decreased sexual desire and performance, or impotence persists, consult a doctor immediately.

Can prostate pain be treated with common pain medications?

Having problems around the intimate area often makes many people reluctant to consult a doctor. So, are there prostate drugs available over the counter in pharmacies?

More and more evidence is emerging that prostate enlargement is influenced by inflammation. If that is the case, regular use of pain relievers may help.

Painkillers are a group of medicines that help relieve inflammation. The most common types are aspirin and ibuprofen. Both of these drugs are often used to relieve arthritis symptoms and prevent heart disease.

Several studies have shown that men who take pain relievers regularly not only act as prostate drugs but also improve their prostate health. However, there is no strong evidence to recommend pain relievers as prostate drugs.

Researchers in the Netherlands actually found that the risk of experiencing acute urinary retention (severe difficulty urinating) was two times higher in men who took pain relievers as prostate drugs, than in those who did not take it at all.

The study reports that men who recently started taking pain relievers for prostate problems were at the highest risk of developing urine retention. Furthermore, pain relievers can be exacerbated by their effect on the bladder and not on the prostate gland itself.

If you notice an increase in symptoms of prostate problems while taking pain relievers, inform your doctor immediately and try to reduce or avoid using the drug temporarily.