Men’s Health Awareness Month: Check for Male Pelvic Floor Dysfunction

June is National Men’s Health Awareness month. When we think of men’s health, we often think of issues like prostate health, prostate cancer prevention and cardiovascular health. However, there are also other issues of men’s health that can be overlooked or go untreated because practitioners may not recognize that male pelvic floor dysfunction is contributing to the symptoms.

Pelvic Floor Dysfunction in Men

At Rebalance, we often get asked questions related to women’s health and pelvic floor dysfunction, but did you know that pelvic pain can be a common problem for men as well? This can manifest itself with pain in the hip, belly, pelvis or back, but also with symptoms of prostatitis.

Did you know:

• *10 percent of men will experience pelvic pain symptoms
• *50 percent of men will deal with prostates at some point in their lives
• *97 percent of the men who experience prostatitis symptoms will be treated with antibiotics despite no evidence of prostate or bladder infection
• *the majority of these men who do not show signs of infection can have pelvic floor dysfunction and can be treated with physical therapy

Prostatitis and Male Pelvic Floor Dysfunction

The form of prostatitis that is related to pelvic muscle dysfunction is called chronic pelvic pain syndrome. Because it is not a disease, it can manifest itself in different ways with overlapping causes. In addition to pelvic pain and mirroring symptoms of prostatitis, it can manifest itself in the following symptoms:

• *Difficulty urinating, starting the urinary stream or straining to urinate
• *Urinary urgency and frequency
• *Burning during after urination
• *Changes in erectile quality, strength of ejaculate and/or orgasm intensity
• *Pain with ejaculation
• *Pain and/or difficulty with bowel movement
• *Perineal, penile or anal pain
• *Perineal, penile or anal pain with sitting and/or exercise
• *Pain within the perineum region during sitting

Unresolved pain in the abdomen, groin, legs and/or back that follow workouts or heavy lifting may also be tell-tale signs that there is a pelvic floor issue for men. If you have experienced any of the above symptoms or think that you may be experiencing pelvic floor issues, contact us here to schedule a complimentary phone consultation to discuss treatment.