..... Click the link for more information. . It is an organ about the size of a chestnut and consists of glandular and muscular tissue. It is situated below the neck of the bladder, encircling the urethra. The prostate produces a thin, milky, alkaline fluid that is secreted into the urethra at the time of emission of semen, providing an added medium for the life and motility of sperm. It is probable that prostatic fluid enhances fertility since the fluid flowing from the testes and seminal vesicles is acidic and sperm are not optimally mobile unless their medium is relatively alkaline.
In men over 50 enlargement of the prostate (benign prostatic hypertrophy) is common. Sometimes the result is pressure on the urethra and bladder, which interferes with urination, precipitating urinary retention and kidney disease. Balloon dilatation of the urethra and medication with alpha blockers, finasteride (Proscar), and extracts of saw palmetto have joined traditional surgical removal of the prostate (prostatectomy) as therapies. See also prostate cancer prostate cancer, cancer originating in the prostate gland . Prostate cancer is the leading malignancy in men in the United States and is second only to lung cancer as a cause of cancer death in men.
..... Click the link for more information. , prostatitis prostatitis (prŏs'tətī`tĭs), inflammation of the prostate gland .
..... Click the link for more information. .
Bibliography
See J. P. Blandy and B. Lytton, The Prostate (1986).
prostate gland
Chestnut-shaped male reproductive organ, located under the bladder, which adds secretions to the sperm during ejaculation of semen. It surrounds the urethra (see urinary system) and is rounded at the top, narrowing to a blunt point. The prostate consists of 30–50 glands, supported by connective tissue, that discharge fluids into the urethra and two ejaculatory ducts. Those ducts, which also carry sperm and fluid discharged by the seminal vesicles, join the urethra inside the prostate. The prostate contributes 15–30% of the seminal fluid. It reaches its mature size at puberty. Around age 50, it commonly shrinks and decreases its secretions; an increase in size after midlife may be due to inflammation or malignancy. See also prostatic disorder.
Prostate gland
A triangular body in men, the size and shape of a chestnut, that lies immediately in front of the bladder with its apex directed down and forward. It is found only in the male, having no female counterpart. The prostatic portion of the urethra extends through it, passing from the bladder to the penis. This organ contains 15–20 branched, tubular glands which form lobules. The gland ducts open into the urethra. Between the gland clusters, or alveoli, there is a dense, fibrous, connecting tissue, the stroma, which also forms a tough capsule around the gland, continuous with the bladder wall. Penetrating the prostate to empty into the urethra are the ejac-ulatory ducts from the seminal vesicles which are located above and behind the organ (see illustration). The prostatic gland secretes a viscid, alkaline fluid which aids in sperm motility and in neutralizing the acidity of the vagina, thus enhancing fertilization. After middle age, the prostate is sometimes subject to new tissue growth, usually benign, that may result in interference with urine flow through the compressed urethra.
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