Discharge from the natural openings of the human body can reveal a lot about a person's state of health. The nature of the discharge from the ear speaks of the health or disease of the ear, the discharge from the nose gives comprehensive information about the pathology of this organ, the discharge from the penis indicates the state of the organs of the male reproductive system.
Very often, an unusual discharge from the penis becomes the first, and sometimes the only symptom of a serious illness. Therefore, a man who pays attention to his sexual organ should pay attention not only to its size, but also to the nature of the secretions.
Discharge from the penis is a collective concept that combines discharge from the urethra (urethra), discharge from the sebaceous glands (many are located on the head of the penis) and discharge from pathological skin formations. There are three types of normal (physiological) secretions and a wide variety of pathological secretions.
Physiological discharge from the penis
The first type of normal discharge is libidinal (physiological) urethrorrhea, which is a transparent secret flowing from the urethra against the background of sexual arousal. The source of the secretions during arousal in men in this case are the urethral glands. The volume of the secretions can vary from small to significant, depending on the physiological characteristics of the man and the duration of sexual abstinence. Sometimes physiological urethrorrhea accompanies defecation. It must be said that the composition of the secret released during urethrorrhea includes a certain amount of spermatozoa, which, getting into the genitals of a woman, can lead to conception and the development of pregnancy.
In some cases, physiological, but occurring in larger quantities, discharge can be a manifestation of a disease of the reproductive system. Therefore, if the type or amount of discharge differs from your usual norm, you should discuss this issue with your doctor.
The second type of normal penile discharge is smegma. Smegma is the secretion of glands located in the skin of the foreskin and glans. The amount of smegma is usually small, and if daily hygiene procedures are followed, it is easily washed off and does not cause problems. When the rules of personal hygiene are violated, smegma accumulates on the scalp and between the sheets of foreskin, creating the conditions for the development of the inflammatory process.
To avoid the accumulation of smegma and subsequent inflammation, it is necessary to wash the penis regularly (1-2 times a day, with plenty of warm water and unscented soaps). When washing, it is imperative to move the foreskin and wash the glans, carefully removing all secretions.
The normal secretions of the penis also include sperm (semen) — a mixture of sex gland secretions and sperm released during ejaculation (ejaculation), sexual intercourse, or masturbation (masturbation). Normally, the release of sperm is accompanied by sexual discharge (orgasm). This group of normal penile discharge also includes wet dreams - involuntary ejaculation (usually at night), which occurs in boys during puberty (after 14-15 years) and in men after prolonged sexual abstinence. The average frequency of wet dreams varies widely - from 1-3 per week to 1-2 for 2-3 months.
Pathological discharge from the penis
The causes of the appearance of pathological discharge from the penis can be a variety of diseases, including inflammatory processes caused by their own opportunistic flora or sexually transmitted infections, oncological diseases, the consequences of injuries and operations. Pathological secretions from the penis differ in volume (sparse, moderate, copious), color (transparent, cloudy white, milky white, white, yellow, yellow-green, mixed with blood), consistency (liquid, viscous), frequency of occurrence ( constant, intermittent, morning, associated with urination or alcohol consumption). The type of discharge is influenced by the type of causative agent of the disease, the severity of the inflammation, the state of the patient's immune system, the "prescription" of the disease and the presence of concomitant diseases. Note that the same disease can be accompanied by secretions of different types, and at the same time different diseases can lead to the appearance of excretions from the penis that look completely similar. That is why sometimes it is simply impossible to diagnose a disease by the appearance of the discharge alone.
Discharge from the penis related to sexually transmitted diseases
Mucus discharge from the penis - transparent and viscous with a small amount of leukocytes - is characteristic of ureaplasmosis, mycoplasmosis and chlamydia.
Mucopurulent discharge—a translucent milky-white fluid composed of urethral mucus, inflammatory exudate, and leukocytes—is characteristic of trichomoniasis, ureaplasmosis, and chlamydia during an exacerbation. Chlamydia is also characterized by accumulated secretions "sticking" to the glans.
Purulent discharge - a sticky liquid of thick consistency, colored yellow or yellow-green, consists of urethral mucus, exfoliated urethral epithelium and a significant number of leukocytes - the most common symptom of gonorrhea. A characteristic feature of gonorrheal urethritis is the severity of subjective symptoms such as pain, soreness, itching (especially when urinating), a significant amount and constant type of discharge from the urethra.
Currently, patients with sexually transmitted diseases very often have a combined infection - that is, an infection caused by several infectious agents (trichomoniasis and chlamydia, gonorrhea and chlamydia, mycoplasmosis and ureaplasmosis, etc. ), which significantly change the symptoms and manifestations of the infection. Therefore, it is not possible to make a definitive diagnosis and prescribe treatment only on the basis of information about the nature of the discharge and the patient's complaints. It is important that self-treatment with antibiotics quite simply stops the symptoms of sexually transmitted diseases (including penile discharge). However, in this case, the disappearance of the symptoms does not mean the disappearance of the disease. The disease simply fades into the shadows, only to return with renewed vigor after the end of antibiotic therapy. In addition, illiteracy leads to the formation of resistance of microorganisms to the antibacterial drugs used.
Discharge from the penis associated with non-venereal inflammatory processes
In this case, the causative agent of infection becomes a representative of its own opportunistic flora (streptococci, staphylococci, fungi of the genus Candida, Escherichia coli), which became more active as a result of a decrease in human immune defense .
Non-gonococcal urethritis - inflammation of the urethra (urethra) is accompanied by the appearance of mucopurulent discharge. A characteristic feature is the absence or slight severity of symptoms (ache, soreness, itching) and a small amount of discharge, which occurs mainly during a long break between urination.
Assignments with balanoposthitis (inflammation of the foreskin of the penis) are most often very clear, mucopurulent or purulent, accompanied by pain in the glans penis, swelling and redness of the foreskin.
Prostatitis (inflammation of the prostate) is accompanied by the appearance of mucous and mucopurulent secretions (depending on the severity of the inflammatory process), drawing pains in the perineum, impaired urination and potency.
A very common disease of the male genital organs is thrush (candidiasis) - an inflammatory process associated with the activation of opportunistic Candida fungi. Typical manifestations of thrush in men are pronounced redness of the skin of the penis, the appearance of itching, burning, and also copious curdled discharge.
Discharge from the penis that is not associated with inflammation
This is a rather rare type of discharge associated with trauma and tumor processes in the organs of the reproductive system, as well as diseases of the nervous system.
Spermatorrhea is the ejaculation of semen from the urethra without orgasm, outside of intercourse or masturbation. The main cause of spermatorrhea is a violation of the muscle tone of the vas deferens, which is associated with diseases of the central nervous system, less often with chronic inflammatory processes. In some cases, the cause of spermatorrhea cannot be determined.
Hematorrhea is the discharge of blood from the urethra. The most common cause of hematorhoea is a mechanical injury to the urethra as a result of the introduction of foreign bodies, when taking a smear, after or during an instrumental examination of the urethra, bladder. Hematorrhea also occurs with trauma to the penis, urethra, malignant tumors of the urethra, penis, prostate, polyps, excretion of stones, sand in urolithiasis.
Prostatorrhea - leakage of prostatic secretions from the urethra - is observed with a decrease in the tone of smooth muscle fibers of the excretory duct of the prostate during its chronic inflammation or other diseases (for example, with a neurogenic bladder, prostatic adenoma). .
Look for the cause of the penile discharge
Since there are many reasons why abnormal (unphysiological) penile discharge may occur, a qualified urologist should investigate the cause in each individual case. When examining a patient with complaints of discharge from the penis, the doctor should carefully examine the skin for rashes, palpate the lymph nodes (for their enlargement, pain), and examine underwear.
The nature of the discharge from the penis is assessed at the beginning of the examination and after a light massage of the urethra, which is performed after abstinence from urination for 2-3 hours. The obligatory studies that a man with unusual discharge from the penis must undergo include general blood tests (extended) and urine, a blood glucose test, a smear from the urethra, seeding of urethral secretions, a digital examination of the prostate gland, ultrasound, if necessaryof the bladder and prostate, urography, computed tomography.
With inflammatory processes, the examination of the urethral swab provides the most valuable information. The results of this study depend on the severity and duration of the disease. Inflammation is indicated by the presence of 4 or more leukocytes, the appearance of cylindrical and parabasilar epithelium indicates the severity and depth of the inflammatory process.
Preparing to take a smear. In order for the swab results to be meaningful and to help the doctor in the diagnosis, it is necessary to prepare properly for the swab collection. For this purpose, local use of antibiotics, antiseptics and antifungal drugs for 3 days before the study is excluded. Within 3 hours before the study, it is necessary to refrain from urination and external toilet of the genitals. Swabs are taken no earlier than 3 weeks after the end of systemic antibiotic therapy (administration of antibiotics orally or in the form of injections).
What do urethral swab results indicate?
- Elevated leukocytes - acute urethritis, exacerbation of chronic urethritis.
- Elevated eosinophils - allergic urethritis.
- Elevated red blood cells - trauma, tumors, shedding of stones or sand with urolithiasis, severe inflammation.
- Epithelial cells in large numbers - chronic urethritis, urethral leukoplakia.
- spermatozoa - spermatorrhea.
- Lipoid grains - prostorrhea.
- Mucus without blood cells - urethrorrhea.
- Key cells (small rods on epithelial cells) with a small number of neutrophils - urethritis.
In a normal smear, leukocytes are detected up to 4 in the field of view, the bacterial flora is represented by individual cocci, rods.
Finally
The appearance of discharge from the penis is best considered a symptom of a disease, the nature of which can only be determined by a doctor and only at a personal appointment. It is impossible to independently diagnose the pathology that led to the appearance of secretions, so it is not advisable to treat it yourself. In this case, self-treatment attempts do not lead to recovery, but only falsify the symptoms of the disease and lead to loss of time - valuable in the case of some serious illnesses. Watch your health!