Epididymitis is one of the common diseases of the male reproductive system. It is mainly caused by infection and the spread of adjacent organs. The symptoms are sudden pain in the scrotum, swelling of the epididymis, apparent tenderness, fever, and induration of the epididymis. Acute epididymitis is often secondary to the urethra, prostate, or seminal vesicle infection, but without timely and effective treatment, it will delay and cause male infertility.
This disease belongs to the scope of carbuncle in traditional Chinese medicine. Its clinical manifestations are sudden onset, pain, and swelling in the scrotum, accompanied by fever, aversion to cold and other symptoms of systemic infection. The pain can radiate to the groin, lower abdomen, and perineum. Epididymitis is a common disease in young adults but is also occasionally seen in children or the elderly.
Epididymitis is caused by bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus, or Streptococcus. When the organs adjacent to the testis (such as the prostate, seminal vesicle, posterior urethra, etc.) are infected, the bacteria mentioned above will take the opportunity to invade the epididymis and cause epididymitis.
According to the manifestations of epididymitis, epididymitis is generally divided into the following two types in the clinic:
Acute epididymitis is relatively acute, with apparent vaginal cyst and pain. Sometimes the pain will radiate to the groin and waist. The activities of some patients with acute epididymitis will be affected because the pain may be increased during workouts, while the pain of patients will be relatively reduced during rest.
Moreover, acute epididymitis shows epididymis enlargement. Epididymitis is easy to involve the testes, which will cause epididymitis and growth of the testes. It is difficult to distinguish the epididymis from the testes at this time, and the patient will have obvious pain when touching them.
The clinical symptoms of chronic epididymitis are relatively mild. The primary manifestation is that the epididymis of the affected side may have dull pain, which is not very severe. Some patients must be carefully aware that the local area may become slightly larger or there may be a lump when pressing. At the same time, there will be some local feelings of falling and swelling.
In addition, if it is not treated for a long time, it may also impact the quality of personal sexual life, and there may be symptoms of sexual dysfunction.
Is epididymitis serious?
Epididymitis and male infertility epididymis comprises more than ten testicular output tubules gathered in the posterior upper part of the testis, then coiling downward to the testis's lower pole. It is a long and thin pipe, which is very important for sperm to "nurture," and it is a "foster mother" worthy of the name of sperm.
If the epididymis is unfortunately infected with pathogenic microorganisms, causing inflammation, causing congestion, and edema in the lumen, its ability to nurture sperm will naturally decrease or even be in a slow state. The epididymis secretes a variety of nutrients to sperm, which will significantly reduce the ability of sperm to obtain in the epididymis and ultimately lead to a significant increase in the ratio of inactive sperm or dead sperm in the ejaculated semen. Even if the sperm can move, its ability is fragile, leading to asthenospermia or dead sperm disease.
Epididymitis brings the most significant impact: epididymal cysts and epididymal induration. What is its impact? Its influence will lead to sperm delivery disorder, leading to male infertility. Also, if time goes by, the treatment of this cyst will become more and more difficult. According to current statistics, the primary cause of most male infertility is this epididymal cyst and induration.
So, how to treat epididymitis? Epididymitis can be treated with anti-infection, symptomatic, general, etc.
1.Anti-infection treatment. It is mainly used for epididymitis caused by infection. It needs to screen the infection focus. Patients can take sensitive antibiotics to control the condition through bacterial culture and drug sensitivity tests. Common drugs include ceftazidime, erythromycin, ofloxacin, tetracycline, moxifloxacin, etc.
2.Symptomatic treatment. In the anti-infection process, most patients with epididymitis also need symptomatic treatment to relieve pain, improve blood circulation, and promote the disappearance of systemic infection. For epididymitis caused by injury, symptomatic treatment has become the dominant treatment method because there is no infection factor. For example, use ibuprofen to relieve pain, wet compress with magnesium sulfate solution to reduce swelling, etc.
Sometimes antibiotics are also used for patients with epididymitis caused by injury to prevent infection, and antipyretic drugs are also given.
Traditional Chinese medicine Diuretic and Anti-inflammatory Pillis commonly used to treat epididymitis. Its heat-clearing, detoxification, swelling-relieving, and pain-relieving effects can help eliminate swelling and pain of epididymis. The impact of promoting qi and blood circulation, resolving phlegm, and dispersing nodules have a significant impact on the local acid swelling discomfort caused by chronic epididymitis. Moreover, it acts on the whole urogenital system and can treat prostatitis, orchitis, etc.
3. General treatment. Patients should pay attention to rest in daily life because excessive activities aggravate the congestion or swelling of epididymis. At the same time, acute and chronic epididymitis can be relieved by raising the scrotum, early ice compress, and late hot compress. Ice or hot compress may temporarily affect the spermatogenic function of the testis, so those who have not yet given birth should use it with caution.