Chronic prostatitis or chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) is a urogenital disease associated with persistent and life-altering pelvic and genital pain.

This is the first study to estimate the prevalence of CP-like symptoms in adolescent males, and to show the negative impact that pain, urinary symptoms, and depression have on boys' quality of life. The study is published in the British Journal of Urology .

"Boys are suffering in a medical silence, where physicians and even specialists remain unaware of the occurrence and strong negative developmental impact of these disease symptoms," says lead researcher Dean Tripp, professor of Psychology and Urology at Queen's. "These terrible symptoms of pain are interfering with the developmental trajectory of adolescent boys. Social relationships and academic performance are two of my major concerns," he adds.

"It is prevalent, debilitating, and it costs society a lot in direct and indirect ways," says Urology professor Curtis Nickel, who co-authored the study. "CP/CPPS is the black sheep of the urologic diseases," he says. "It used to be prostate cancer, and before that it was ED. We have always been aware that adult men are suffering and are reluctant to seek medical help. Now we know adolescents are, too."

The researchers hope that a better understanding of the prevalence of CP/CPPS will lead to better treatment and diagnosis of the disease. Since treatment is difficult, and most patients can't be cured if they have CP/CPPS for 10 years or longer, the researchers believe that early diagnosis is the key to management

The study looks not only at the prevalence of CP/CPPS in teenage boys, but also at the psychological impact associated with the symptoms. "In older men, CP-like symptoms are so devastating they are compared to the negative life impact of Crohn's disease, diabetes or heart attack," notes Dr. Tripp. "Our initial research indicates that these CP-like symptoms are having a significant negative quality of life impact in young boys. We must not tolerate inaction on this matter," he adds.

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Between 36-38 weeks gestational age, breathing movements were identified using specific criterion. Measures of fetal heart rate and autonomic control were analyzed during episodes of fetal breathing and non-breathing movements. Although there was no difference in the number of breathing episodes, differences were noted between the groups.

Results

The researchers found:

Fetal HR was significantly lower in the exercise group during both breathing and non-breathing movement periods. Fetal short-term and overall heart rate variability were higher in the exercise group during breathing movements. Three independent measures of vagal control were higher in the exercise-exposed fetuses during breathing movements. During periods of fetal non-breathing, there were no significant differences in measures of vagal control between groups. There were no group or breathing period differences in sympathetic heart rate control.

Conclusion

According to Drs. May and Gustafson, "These findings suggest a potential benefit of maternal exercise on fetal development because of the link between fetal breathing movements and the developing autonomic nervous system." Their next step is to use exercise as a potential intervention to improve short and long term outcomes in children born to women at risk for gestational diabetes.

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