Many men with a little understood prostate condition called non-bacterial prostatitis have persistent concerns about their health, even after their symptoms improve, a new study shows.

The condition, in which the prostate gland may or may not become inflamed, leads to pelvic pain and, in some cases, urination problems. Doctors are not sure what causes the disorder; unlike some less common forms of prostatitis, bacterial infection is not the culprit.

There is no widely effective treatment, though certain medications, hot baths and other therapies can relieve symptoms.

While little is known about the roots of nonbacterial prostatitis, it does appear the symptoms improve over time for most men - and there is no evidence that the condition can lead to Prostate cancer.

Still, in the new study in the Archives of Internal Medicine, many men remained uneasy about the possibility of cancer, infection or worsening symptoms one year after being diagnosed with non-bacterial prostatitis.

Of the 286 men researchers interviewed, two-thirds said they still had at least one concern about the condition one year after diagnosis, including men whose symptoms had gone away.

Not surprisingly, concerns were greatest among men who’d suffered symptoms in the past month. Among these men, 86 percent were worried that their symptoms might not resolve, and 46 percent thought they might have cancer.

Even though nonbacterial prostatitis is not well understood, there are a number of ways doctors can allay patients’ concerns about their symptoms, according to lead study author Dr. Judith A. Turner of the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle.

“For men concerned that the problem will worsen or not resolve,” she told Reuters Health, “it may be helpful to provide information that for most men, symptoms do improve with time.”

Pelvic pain and other symptoms can recur, Turner added, but in most cases this is not an indicator that a man has a more serious disease, such as cancer.

When men are particularly concerned about cancer, she noted, doctors could discuss with them the possibility of testing for prostate or testicular cancer.

The study included 286 men ages 18 to 65 who belonged to a single Washington managed care plan. The men were interviewed soon after a diagnosis of non-bacterial prostatitis, then again 3, 6 and 12 months later.

At the last interview, 65 percent of the men still had at least one concern about the diagnosis, most often worrying that the problem would get worse. Forty percent felt they lacked a good understanding of what was causing their symptoms.

It’s unclear why so many had lingering concerns, including whether it stemmed from a lack of information from their doctors. The researchers, Turner said, did not ask the men to recall what their doctors had told them.

SOURCE: Archives of Internal Medicine, May 9, 2005.