[Chronic prostatitis and PSA values]

OBJECTIVES. There is evidence of a clinical correlation between chronic prostatitis and elevated serum levels of prostate specific antigen (PSA). In the present study a system was developed to stage inflammation in benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH), which correlates with serum PSA. MATERIALS AND METHODS. We retrospectively studied 98 patients undergoing transurethral resection of prostate. In all patients, histological sections of prostate showed BPH and inflammatory cell infiltration, which could be graded as G1, G2 and G3, according to involvement of epithelium. PSA levels were assessed pre- and postoperatively by the Immulite 2000 PSA assay. RESULTS. The difference in mean serum PSA values between groups G1 and G3 was highly significant (G1 = 3.3±2.1; G3 = 7.1±3.9 ng/mL; p<0.05). Mean age, prostatic weight and PSA density were similar in the three groups (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS. We concluded that in patients with BPH and prostatitis on pathological examination there is an associated PSA elevation when glandular epithelium is disrupted.