What are the symptoms of prostatic enlargement?
The prostate usually grows very slowly and for several years there may be no symptoms. Indeed the symptoms may become quite severe, yet the person may not notice and accept them as normal. The common symptoms are: • The urine stream may become weak • The flow starts after a period of waiting – hesitancy • The person may need to go to the toilet frequently • He may have to get up several times at night to pass urine • There may be dribbling of urine or it may come in stops and starts • Occasionally there may be an urgent, uncontrollable desire to pass urine, sometimes leading to leakage • If the prostate becomes very large the patient may present with complete blockage, and retention of urine. This may happen so slowly that the patient passes a small quantity at a time while retaining the rest of the urine in the bladder which holds over 500 ml urine all the time – an event called chronic retention.
