Epidemiology and evaluation of chronic pelvic pain syndrome in men.

Chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS), formerly known as chronic abacterial prostatitis, is characterised by pelvic or perineal pain without evidence of urinary tract infection. It manifests as pain in a variety of areas including the perineum, rectum, prostate, penis, testicles and abdomen [Litwin MS, McNaughton-Collins M, Fowler Jr FJ, Nickel JC, Calhoun EA, Pontari MA, et al. The National Institutes of Health chronic prostatitis symptom index: development and validation of a new outcome measure. Chronic Prostatitis Collaborative Research Network. J Urol 1999;2:369-75]. It is also frequently associated with symptoms including urinary urgency, frequency, hesitancy and poor or interrupted flow. CPPS may be associated with white cells in the prostatic secretions (inflammatory) (NIH-3A), or white cell absence in the prostatic secretions (non-inflammatory) (NIH-3B) [Krieger JN, Nyberg Jr L, Nickel JC. NIH consensus definition and classification of prostatitis. JAMA 1999;3:236-7].

Evaluation of the Live Biotherapeutic Product, Asymptomatic Bacteriuria Escherichia coli 2-12, in Healthy Dogs and Dogs with Clinical Recurrent UTI.

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial resistance is an emerging problem. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVE: To investigate the safety and efficacy of a live biotherapeutic product, ASB E. coli 2-12 for UTI treatment. ANIMALS: Six healthy research dogs; nine client-owned dogs with recurrent UTI. METHODS: Prospective noncontrolled clinical trial. For safety data, research dogs were sedated, a urinary catheter was inserted into the bladder; 1010 CFU/mL of ASB E. coli 2-12 was instilled. Urine was cultured on days 1, 3, and 8 post-instillation and dogs were observed for lower urinary tract signs (LUTS). For client-owned dogs, ASB E. coli 2-12 was instilled similarly and urine cultures analyzed on days 1, 7, and 14 days postinstillation. RESULTS: No LUTS were noted in any of the 6 research dogs after ASB E. coli 2-12 infusion. Pulse field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) studies confirmed the bacterial strains isolated matched that ASB E. coli 2-12 strain. Four of the nine client-owned dogs had complete or nearly complete clinical cures by day 14. Of these four dogs, 3 also had microbiologic cures at day 14; one of these dogs had subclinical bacteriuria (in addition to ASB E. coli 2-12). Three of these four dogs had ASB E. coli 2-12 isolated from their urine at day 14. With the exception of mild, temporary, self-limiting, hyporexia in two dogs on the day of biotherapeutic administration, there were no major adverse effects. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: These results suggest ASB E. coli 2-12 is safe and should be investigated in a larger controlled study evaluating clinical UTI in dogs.

Multiclinic study of norfloxacin for treatment of urinary tract infections.

A multicenter open study of 477 patients with urinary tract infections was undertaken. The patients were treated with 400 mg of norfloxacin twice daily for seven to 30 days. Four hundred eight (98 percent) of 417 gram-negative organisms and 58 (94 percent) of 62 gram-positive organisms were susceptible to norfloxacin. The infecting organisms were eradicated in 276 of 307 evaluable patients (90 percent). Of the 31 bacteriologic failures, two organisms were initially resistant to norfloxacin and four organisms acquired resistance to norfloxacin and persisted despite treatment. Twenty-eight patients (10 percent) had recurrent infections; 24 of the 25 organisms involved in these infections were susceptible to norfloxacin. Seventeen patients (3.5 percent) experienced clinical adverse effects that were probably or definitely related to the drug. One adverse reaction was serious. Although norfloxacin was discontinued in two patients because of clinical side effects, none of the patients experienced laboratory adverse effects that were either serious or drug related.

Urinary tract infections in urology: a urologist's view of chronic bacteriuria.

Urine culture performed during and after antimicrobial therapy will differentiate unresolved urinary tract infections from recurrent infections. Recurrent infections with the same organism and at close intervals are frequently caused by a focus of bacterial persistence within the urinary tract, and infections with different organisms and/or at longer intervals are characteristic of reinfections with bacteria from outside the urinary tract. Unresolved infections are usually due to resistant bacteria and are treated by modification of therapy based on antimicrobial sensitivity testing. When unresolved bacteriuria is caused by organisms sensitive to the initial antimicrobial therapy, azotemia or a large bacterial mass density should be suspected. Recurrent infections at close intervals and/or with the same organism are usually caused by a bacterial focus in an acquired or congenital abnormality of the urinary tract such as infection stones, which must be removed to cure the recurrent infections. If the bacterial focus within the urinary tract cannot be removed, long-term low-dose antimicrobial prophylaxis can prevent the morbidity of recurrent infections. Reinfection requires careful bacteriologic monitoring and low-dose prophylactic, intermittent, or post-intercourse antimicrobial therapy.

Urinary tract infection in urology, including acute and chronic prostatitis.

Heightened awareness of patients with increased risk for severe or potentially severe UTIs is paramount for early diagnosis and treatment. Urologic assessment of these patients is frequently necessary for cure and to prevent significant sequelae. Unresolved infections are usually caused by resistant bacteria and are treated by modification of therapy based on antimicrobial sensitivity testing. When unresolved bacteriuria is caused by organisms sensitive to the initial antimicrobial therapy, azotemia or a large bacterial mass density should be suspected. Recurrent infections at close intervals or with the same organism are usually caused by a bacterial focus in an acquired or congenital abnormality of the urinary tract, such as infection stones. The bacterial focus must be removed to cure the recurrent infections. If the bacterial focus within the urinary tract cannot be removed, long-term, low-dose antimicrobial suppression will prevent the morbidity of recurrent infections. Reinfection requires careful bacteriologic monitoring and low-dose prophylactic, intermittent, or postintercourse antimicrobial therapy. In the setting of prostatitis syndrome, the patient must first be classified into one of three categories: bacterial prostatitis, nonbacterial prostatitis, or pelviperineal pain syndrome. Bacterial prostatitis frequently responds to appropriate antimicrobial agents, whereas nonbacterial prostatitis and pelviperineal pain require an empiric multimodal approach.

Pathogenesis of recurrent urinary tract infection: use of understanding as therapy.

Understanding bacterial adherence and explaining it to patients is essential in the management of recurrent urinary tract infection. Bowel flora, usually Escherichia coli, colonize first the vaginal introitus, then the urethral mucosa, and they subsequently ascend to the bladder. The essential step is bacterial adhesion to receptor sites on uroepithelial cells. Women who suffer recurrent infections have more receptive cells than the cells of other women. Long-term antimicrobial therapy reduces susceptibility to reinfection. Bringing patients into an understanding of their infectious process and into a partnership in the alleviation of their suffering is a powerful therapeutic tool.

Diagnosis and treatment of prostatic infections.

The diagnosis and management of prostatitis and pelviperineal pain is a challenge to the clinician. Careful examination of the prostatic fluid and bacteriologic cultures to differentiate bacterial from nonbacterial prostatitis are essential. Antimicrobial therapy is effective in the majority of men with acute or chronic bacterial prostatitis. Nonbacterial prostatitis is the most common type of prostatitis. The etiology is unknown and treatment with repeated antimicrobial therapy is ineffective. Alpha-blocking agents may relieve symptomatology. Pelviperineal pain may be of prostatic origin but other nonprostatic causes should be sought.

Do infectious agents cause interstitial cystitis?

The possibility that infectious agents play a role in the etiology of interstitial cystitis (IC) has been investigated for a number of years. Early studies were directed toward attempts to cultivate bacteria and fungi on routine culture media and microscopic examinations of urine or bladder tissue specimens for the presence of microorganisms. In more recent years, this approach has been expanded to include sophisticated culture techniques to search for the presence of fastidious and unusual organisms that would not be detected by routine culture methods. Similarly, the presence of viruses has been sought by incubating specimens from interstitial cystitis patients in mammalian cell cultures to detect cytopathic effects. None of these approaches has provided convincing evidence that micro-organisms or viruses are associated with IC. The latest attempts to search for the presence of bacteria have made use of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to amplify bacterial 16S rRNA genes that would be present if bacteria were present in bladder tissue or urine of IC patients. This approach allows bacteria to be detected and even identified without culture. However, the results from the great majority of bladder biopsy samples analyzed by these molecular techniques have been negative. PCR strategies have also been used to search for the presence of certain viruses in IC specimens, again without success. At this time, the results from laboratory culture, light and electron microscopy, and various molecular strategies to detect micro-organisms and viruses in IC specimens all argue against an infectious etiology for IC.

Endoscopic suspension of vesical neck for urinary incontinence.

Surgically curable urinary incontinence in women is achieved by restoration of the vesical neck from a dependent position in the pelvis to one high behind the symphysis pubis. Endoscopic suspension, which accomplishes this by elevating the internal vesical neck on both sides with two permanent buttressed nylon loops is effective for correcting primary or recurrent stress urinary incontinence and even total incontinence in over 90 per cent of patients. Technical advantages over retropubic vesical neck suspensions include less postoperative morbidity, functional measurements and anatomic visualization of a restored vesical neck during the procedure, easy access to the surgically difficult pelvis, and simultaneous repair of significant rectoceles or substantial cystoceles through the same operative field.

Efficacy and tolerability of norfloxacin vs. ciprofloxacin in complicated urinary tract infection.

This prospective, open, randomized clinical study compared the efficacy and tolerability of norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin in adult patients with complicated urinary tract infection, defined as infection in the presence of an underlying anatomic or functional abnormality of the urinary tract. Seventy-two patients were randomized, 37 received norfloxacin (400 mg orally twice daily for 10-21 days) and 35 received ciprofloxacin (500 mg orally every 12 hours for 14-21 days). Patients were clinically assessed, and urine cultures were obtained following two to four days of therapy, and five to nine days and four to six weeks after discontinuation of therapy. Seventy-two percent of the norfloxacin group and 79 percent of the ciprofloxacin group were considered cured. This difference was not significant. One failure of norfloxacin therapy was associated with the emergence of resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Following norfloxacin therapy, in 2 patients superinfections developed with resistant organisms (Staphylococcus epidermidis [1] and Pseudomonas maltophilia [1]). Twelve patients, 6 in each group, experienced adverse reactions, which were considered related to the study drug therapy in only four instances. Our results indicated comparable efficacy and tolerability of norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin in the treatment of complicated urinary tract infection in adults.

Renal cell carcinoma involving penis and testis: unusual initial presentations of metastatic disease.

Solitary parenchymal metastases of renal cell carcinoma to the penis or testis are rare. We report 1 case of each: in one instance the patient presented with priapism and an asymptomatic primary tumor; in the other, the metastasis presented as an acute change in a long-standing hydrocele more than one year after nephrectomy. Both patients had either positive margins at resection or recurrence after resection of the metastasis. While long-term, disease-free survival has been reported after orchiectomy for isolated metastatic disease, penile involvement appears to carry a very poor prognosis.

Angiosarcoma of the bladder: a review.

OBJECTIVES: To present a new case of angiosarcoma of the bladder, review 9 other previously reported cases, and discuss the unique features of our case with regard to presentation, treatment, and clinical course of patients with this exceedingly rare tumor. The utility of multimodality therapy is emphasized. METHODS: We report the latest case of angiosarcoma of the bladder. We also reviewed the world literature (MEDLINE) and discovered 9 previously reported cases of angiosarcoma of the bladder. Presentation, treatment, and clinical course were analyzed. RESULTS: Of the 10 cases, 2 were considered to have arisen from a preexisting bladder hemangioma. Two patients had a history of prior gynecologic malignancies treated with external beam radiotherapy, with subsequent sarcoma formation within the past treatment field. Two other patients presented with skin lesions that predated the discovery of bladder lesions. Only 4 patients presented with primary bladder lesions and no preexisting disease or previous carcinogenic exposure (except for tobacco use). Hematuria was a universal presentation, and treatment was widely variant. Of the 10 patients, 8 died during a period of follow-up of 23 months. Five patients died of tumor-related causes. Mean survival of these 5 was 10.6 months. The 2 most recent patients (including ours) were alive and tumor free at 8 and 32 months, respectively. Both of these patients underwent multimodality oncologic approaches as part of their treatment regimen. CONCLUSIONS: Angiosarcoma of the bladder is exceedingly rare and usually fatal. Prognosis is poorer than that of angiosarcomas in more traditional sites. Regional lymph nodes are typically spared, but local recurrence with eventual distant metastasis is the rule. Optimal therapy has not been determined, but it most likely should involve a multimodal approach combining radical surgery with chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Treatment of stage D bladder cancer with adjuvant doxorubicin hydrochloride and radiation.

pathologic Stage D bladder cancer was recognized in 16 patients by evaluation tissue obtained by radical cystectomy and pelvic lymphadenectomy (7), pelvic lymph node dissection (3) or biopsies (3), ileal conduit and pelvic lymph node biopsy (1), or transurethral biopsy of the bladder and prostate (2). Treatment of these patients with radiation preceded and followed by doxorubicin hydrochloride (Adriamycin) was initiated three to four weeks postoperatively. The treatment regimen consisted of the following: (1) doxorubicin 60 mg/M2 intravenously every three weeks for three cycles; (2) 5,000 rad external radiation to the whole pelvis in five to six weeks; and (3) doxorubicin for five cycles. The mean survival was twenty-three months. The survival rate was as follows: one year, 10 of 15 patients at risk; two years, 6 of 11; three years, 5 of 9; four years, 1 of 4; and five years, 0 of 2. Ten patients died six to thirty-six months (mean 13.6) postoperatively. In 6 of the patients significant obstruction of small bowel developed. These preliminary observations indicate encouraging therapeutic results with an acceptable morbidity for this regimen.

Unilateral renal papillectomy via laser or incisional techniques: chronic functional effects in the dog.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if selective renal papillectomy would impair urinary concentrating ability, thereby decreasing urinary calcium concentration. METHODS: Left papillectomy was performed in dogs using either incisional (n = 6) or Neodymium:yttrium-aluminum-garnet (Nd:YAG) laser (n = 5) techniques. Split renal function studies were then performed four months postoperatively to determine the effect on multiple parameters including inulin and para-aminohippurate (PAH) clearance, free water reabsorption, and calcium concentrations. Partially infarcted kidneys (n = 6) were evaluated in a similar fashion to determine the role of impaired glomerular filtration rate (GFR) in the observed concentrating defect occurring after papillectomy. RESULTS: Papillectomized kidneys demonstrated impaired free water reabsorption, resulting in a decreased urinary osmolality and an increased fractional excretion of water. Osmolar clearance [Na+] and Na+ excretion were unaffected by papillectomy, whereas [Ca++] was significantly reduced. While a slight defect in free water reabsorption existed following partial infarction, urinary osmolality was only minimally decreased, fractional excretion of water was unchanged, and Na+ excretion was decreased. CONCLUSIONS: The concentrating defect induced by papillectomy via either sharp excision or laser ablation is due to loss of medullary tissue and is greater than the defect resulting from impaired GFR, which is presumably due to decreased medullary solute delivery and increased flow of water in remaining nephrons. Since the physiologic consequences of papillectomy (formation of less concentrated urine with decreased [Ca++]) have potential clinical applicability, further study of this concept is warranted.

Prostatitis: US perspective.

The diagnosis and management of prostatitis syndromes is a challenge to the clinician. Careful history and examination of the prostate fluid and quantitative segmented bacteriologic cultures will lead to proper categorization into the recognized forms of the prostatitis syndrome. Antimicrobial therapy is effective in the majority of men with acute and chronic bacterial prostatitis (CBP). Fluoroquinolone agents appear to have an increasingly important role in this regard, although a randomized, prospective, double-blind study is still lacking. Alpha-1-selective blocking agents may relieve symptomatology of chronic pelvis pain syndrome (CPPS). Other non-prostatic sources of voiding symptoms should be sought and ruled out, especially malignancy or inflammatory disorders.

Prostatitis: US perspective.

The diagnosis and management of prostatitis syndromes is a challenge to the clinician. Careful history and examination of the prostate fluid and quantitative segmented bacteriologic cultures will lead to proper categorization into the recognized forms of the prostatitis syndrome. Antimicrobial therapy is effective in the majority of men with acute and chronic bacterial prostatitis (CBP). Fluoroquinolone agents appear to have an increasingly important role in this regard, although a randomized, prospective, double-blind study is still lacking. Alpha-1-selective blocking agents may relieve symptomatology of chronic pelvis pain syndrome (CPPS). Other non-prostatic sources of voiding symptoms should be sought and ruled out, especially malignancy or inflammatory disorders.

Host pathogenesis in urinary tract infections.

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are the result of an interaction between bacterial virulence and host defense factors that compete to invade or protect the host, respectively. Research over the past 30 years has demonstrated that vaginal colonization with uropathogens precedes most UTIs. Receptivity of the vaginal mucosa for uropathogens is an essential initial step in vaginal mucosa colonization. When vaginal and buccal epithelial cells were collected from patients susceptible to reinfection and compared with such cells obtained from controls resistant to UTIs, the strains that caused cystitis adhered much more avidly to the epithelial cells from susceptible women. These genotypic traits for epithelial cell receptivity may be a major susceptibility factor in UTIs. The presence or absence of blood group determinants on the surface of uroepithelial cells may influence an individual's susceptibility to UTIs. The protective effect in women with the secretor phenotype may be due to fucosylated structures at the cell surface which decrease the availability of putative receptors for Escherichia coli. Susceptibility among women who do not secrete blood group antigens may be due to specific E. coli-binding glycolipids that are absent in women who secrete blood group antigens. Recent studies have shown that the vaginal fluid, which forms an interface between uropathogens and epithelial cells, also influences vaginal colonizations.

Use of the CO2 laser in urology.

The CO2 laser emits coherent light in the far infrared region with an extremely short extinction length. Energy absorption at the impact site is very intense and results in a surgical incision characterized by a zone of vaporization surrounded by a narrow zone of thermal necrosis and sublethal thermal injury. Infected epithelium can be ablated precisely to a shallow depth so that the papillomavirus is killed and rapid healing can occur. The CO2 laser is the treatment of choice for condylomata acuminata that are extensive or recurrent, are within the urethral meatus, or occur during pregnancy, a period during which cytotoxic drugs are contraindicated. With this technique virtually all patients with condylomata acuminata can be cured rapidly with minimal morbidity, complications, or risk of recurrence.

Catheter-associated bacteriuria.

Catheter-associated urinary tract infections are the most common nosocomial infection and a frequent cause of significant morbidity, sepsis, and death. The pathogenesis is multifaceted. Most frequently, bacteria from the urethral meatus ascend to the bladder between the mucosal and catheter surfaces. Alternatively, bacteria may ascend within the drainage system following contamination of the drainage bag or disruption of the catheter tubing junction. The incidence of infection is approximately 5 to 7 per cent for each day of catheterization and closely linked to unalterable host factors such as age, female sex, and debilitating disease. Efforts to reduce the incidence of infection must begin with reduction of the frequency and duration of catheterization. Aseptic insertion of the catheter and careful maintenance of the drainage system are mandatory to prevent incidental bacterial contamination. Prophylactic, systemic, or topical antimicrobial agents and modifications of the catheter drainage system that are designed to reduce contamination are expensive and have not been shown to be efficacious for the majority of patients. Furthermore, antimicrobial prophylaxis frequently leads to outgrowth of resistant bacterial strains that are difficult to eradicate. However, antimicrobial prophylaxis warrants consideration for high-risk patients who are catheterized for a short time. If bacteriuria occurs prior to removal of the catheter, the patient should be treated with appropriate antimicrobial therapy. Urinalysis or urine cultures should be obtained following removal of the catheter to assure sterility of the urinary tract. If these guidelines are followed, the incidence and sequelae of catheter-associated urinary tract infections can be reduced.

Use of antimicrobials for patients undergoing prostatectomy.

Our suggestions for the use of antimicrobials in patients undergoing prostatectomy are summarized in Table 2. The use of antimicrobial prophylaxis perioperatively for patients without bacteriuria remains controversial. Some authors recommend and others do not recommend antimicrobial prophylaxis. We do not recommend perioperative prophylaxis for low-risk patients without previous urinary tract infections or an indwelling urethral catheter. We do recommend that patients with risk factors that increase the rate or consequence of urinary tract infection, those with previous urinary tract infections, or those with indwelling urethral catheters, even though the urine shows no growth, receive perioperative antimicrobial prophylaxis. Antimicrobial therapy is mandatory for patients with preoperative bacteriuria. The drug must be selected according to the susceptibility of the pathogen, and the duration of treatment must be guided by the severity of the infection. At the time of catheter removal, antimicrobial prophylaxis is probably beneficial, and antimicrobial therapy is essential if bacteriuria is present prior to catheter removal. All patients must have cultures after catheter removal and antimicrobial therapy if a urinary tract infection is identified.