Prostatitis

For people who suffer from the adverse effects of prostatitis and a number of other pelvic area related maladies, up until recently they were faced with few remedies or treatments that actually worked. If not for great strides in medicine, many people would still be in a world of pain, with little to no hope for adequate treatment or cure. One such advancement is the Wise Anderson Protocol. Before one can fully understand the techniques associated with such a procedure, an understanding prostatitis and more importantly chronic pelvic pain syndrome must first be established.



Prostatitis and Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome
Chronic prostatitis or chronic pelvic pain syndrome is a medical condition in men characterized by pelvic pain in men and is different from other types of prostatitis like chronic bacterial prostatitis and acute bacterial prostatitis. It is characterized but not limited to acute pelvic pain without a urinary tract infection lasting over 3 months in duration. Pain can range from mild to excruciating. This may cause discomfort in sitting and the pain may radiate through the rectum area. A host of other symptoms may ensue such as perineum and testicular pain, as well as the bladder area. More prevalent is post ejaculatory pain, felt through the nerves and muscles and is a distinguishing factor when diagnosing CPPS as opposed to benign prostate hyperplasia or BHP. Chronis pelvic pain syndrome can often lead to cases of low libido and sexual dysfunction issues.

The majority of suspected cases of prostatitis were devoid of actual infections of the prostate, so in 1995, the National Institute of Health (NIH), redefined prostatitis into four main subcategories:

-  Acute Bacterial Prostatitis- ABP is the condition where the prostate gland is inflamed, caused by bacterial agents such as Escherichia coli and Klebsiella. This can lead to fatal complications if left untreated and is capable of travelling throughout the bloodstream.
-  Chronic Bacterial Prostatitis- The recurring infection and inflammation of the urinary tract and prostate gland. Though not as severe as the acute form of bacterial prostatitis, the symptoms are similar. Many cases of chronic bacterial prostatitis have actually been misdiagnosed and really have interstitial cystitis.
-  Nonbacterial prostatitis- the prostate becomes inflamed but not as a result of bacterial infection
-  Prostatodynia- otherwise known as chronic pelvic pain syndrome. People afflicted with the symptoms of prostatitis but without the inflammation or infection by bacteria. There are also variations of this syndrome that affect women as well.

Treatment Methods
Chronic pelvic pain syndrome is often times difficult to treat properly as many doctors easily misdiagnose it for a host of other illnesses. Conventional ways of treating symptoms associated with CPPS usually have little effect or the relief is only temporary and patients enter remission. Surgical procedures or injection procedures can be problematic if not can make the symptoms worse or lead to other complications.

Alpha blockers are also an alternative form of medication, normally the most widely recommended by doctors for symptoms associated with prostatodynia. The Urologia International Study found that in newly diagnosed cases, certain alpha blockers such as doxazosin and terazosin had some level of success. These findings though, have been unable to be corroborated by other studies.

Wise Anderson Protocol
One breakthrough in the fight against chronic pelvic pain syndrome comes via the Wise Anderson Protocol. This is an alternative method and technique for people who suffer from many symptom forms of prostatitis. It has also been used as treatment for the pelvic tension attributed to chronic prostatitis or CPPS.

Originally developed at Stanford University, this specific program incorporates the use of trigger point release, physical therapy and psychological and behavioral treatment that may also be a contributing factor to CPPS symptoms. Patients are also transitioned to use an internal trigger wand so as to continue the rehabilitation and therapy process as the treatment period lasts more than a year.

The majority of CP/CPPS patients routinely complain about pelvic pain attributed to pelvic floor tension. This tension may be caused or triggered by anxiety or stress related. It is the customary thought that tension is held in the neck but in a small percentage of these cases the tension actually accumulates in the pelvic area and that leads to chronic pelvic pain syndrome. That is specifically why the Wise Anderson Protocol focuses on the pelvic muscles as well as the psychological aspect.

In a study published in the Journal of Urology, Stanford researchers treated 138 men with CPPS for a period no less than a month with myofascial trigger point assessment, with release therapy and paradoxical relaxation therapy. Through this method 72% of the sample field exhibited improved to markedly improved successes. It was then concluded that the procedure represented a therapeutic approach to pain management as well as an improvement over the traditional therapy and methods.

The Wise Anderson Protocol is effective in the way it combines psychological and physical therapy. The physical aspect deals with trigger point release therapy and yoga inspired exercise directed at the abdominal muscles and the pelvic floor. Patients are taught how to use the internal trigger point wand as a trigger point chart and restriction areas.

The second aspect, the psychological one is known as paradoxical relaxation. A one hour recording is listened to everyday. Breathing techniques are an important aspect as well to help the patient focus on relieving tension in the abdominal to pelvic area. This procedure may take up to 14 months to complete as per the level of tension the subject possesses. With daily loosening and relaxing of the pelvic muscles, patients feel a distinct difference. The symptoms of chronic pelvic pain syndrome either become more manageable or stop altogether.