What does it mean to see calcification in the prostate?

Calcification foci in the prostate is a type of prostate problem, mainly caused by small stones in the prostate. There are many causes of this disease, mainly due to chronic diseases or chronic inflammation. It is a common physical disease in men and needs to be treated early.

What does it mean to see calcification in the prostate?

Intraprostatic calcifications are generally small stones formed in the prostatic cavity. The cause is related to prostatitis and chronic urinary tract infection. Prostatic calcifications appear as strong echoes followed by shallow shadows on ultrasound and generally do not cause clinical discomfort. If the prostatic calcification is relatively large, it can be treated surgically and generally does not require any treatment.

Prostatic calcification is one of the common prostatic lesions in men, and it often occurs between the ages of 40 and 60. Pathologically, calcification refers to the deposition of calcium salts in local tissues, which can be a normal physiological process or can be seen in certain pathological conditions. Due to the lack of typical clinical symptoms and signs, prostatic calcification is often discovered through imaging examinations when examining prostate diseases and other urinary system diseases. In imaging examinations, prostatic calcification manifests as strong echo foci or high-density foci in the prostate. With the popularization and improvement of ultrasound technology, the detection rate of prostatic calcification has increased significantly.

Prostate calcification should be distinguished from prostate stones. Prostate stones refer to true stones formed in the prostate gland ducts and prostate alveoli of patients. Such stones are as small as rice grains, can be round or oval in shape, and are hard in texture. However, current medical imaging technology makes it difficult to distinguish whether prostate calcification foci exist in alveoli or gland ducts (true stones) or in the stroma (false stones). Therefore, most scholars currently agree that in imaging examinations, strong echo foci or high-density foci in the prostate are collectively referred to as prostate calcification.

Causes

When various reasons cause the expansion of prostate ducts and alveoli or accumulation of prostate fluid, the exfoliated epithelial cells can aggregate with the amyloid bodies (prostate aggregates) and secretions in the cystic cavity. If calcium salts are gradually deposited, calcification will form. Chemical prostatitis caused by urine reflux is more likely to cause calcification. The cause of prostate calcification is still unclear, and it may be related to factors such as degeneration of prostate tissue, chronic prostatitis, prostate fluid retention, frequent congestion of the prostate, stenosis of the prostate duct, calcium-phosphorus metabolism disorders, and social and psychological factors. It is generally believed that people aged 40 are closely related to prostate hyperplasia.

Existing studies have shown that nanobacterial infection in the prostate may lead to prostate calcification, which may make prostatitis difficult to treat and prone to recurrence. However, the exact relationship between the three requires further research to confirm.

Clinical manifestations

Prostate calcification itself has no obvious symptoms and signs and is often discovered through imaging examinations during the examination of prostate diseases and other urinary system diseases.