A total of 137 patients with a dia
gnosis of chronic bacterial prostatitis (CBP) were subjected to combination pharmacolo
gical therapy with antibacterial a
gents (ciprofloxacin/azithromycin), alpha-blockers (alfuzosin) and
Serenoa repens extracts. Of those, 88 patients (64.2 % ) showed microbiolo
gical eradication at the completion of a 6-week cycle of therapy. Of the remainin
g 49 patients showin
g persistence of the causative or
ganism(s) or reinfection at the end of treatment, 36 completed a second cycle of combination therapy for 6 weeks: 27 patients (75 % ) showed eradication of the causative or
ganism, whereas in nine cases persistence or reinfection was observed. The cumulative eradication rate of the present study – calculated on a total of 137 enrolled patients – is 83.9 % .
Clinical examination showed a marked improvement of signs and symptoms linked to prostatitis. Remarkably, combination therapy could attenuate CBP symptoms prior to microbiological eradication, thus rapidly decreasing the impact of the disease on the quality of life of patients. Clinical remission was extended throughout a follow-up period of 30 months for 94 % of patients, whereas seven patients showed relapse of the disease.
In summary, our results indicate that about 20 % of patients enrolled in this study, who were refractory to a protocol of 6-week combination therapy, could be ‘rescued’ by a second cycle of treatment. Clinical follow-up data show that combination therapy could ensure extended relief from CBP symptoms, and a general improvement in quality of life.