Abstract
Background Chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) is one of the most common diseases in urology, but its pathogenesis remains unclear. As a kind of chronic pain which the patients suffered for more than 3 months, we investigated the influence on patients' brain functional connectivity in resting state. Methods We recruited a cohort of 18 right-handed male patients with CP/CPPS and 21 healthy male right-handed age-matched controls. Their resting-state fMRI data and structural MRI data were preprocessed and processed by RESTPlus V1.22. To assess the integrity of the default mode network (DMN), we utilized the voxel-wised analysis that we set medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and posterior cingulate gyrus (PCC) as seed points to compare the global functional connectivity (FC) strength. Results Compared with healthy control, the FC strength between left mPFC and posterior DMN decreased in the group of CP/CPPS (P < 0.05, GFR correction, voxel P < 0.01, cluster P < 0.05), and the FC strength between the left anterior cerebellar lobe and posterior DMN increased (P < 0.05, GFR correction, voxel P < 0.01, cluster P < 0.05). In the patient group, there was a positive correlation between the increased FC strength and the score of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) anxiety subscale (r = 0.5509, P = 0.0178) in the left anterior cerebellar lobe, a negative correlation between the decreased FC strength and the score of the National Institutes of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (r = −0.6281, P = 0.0053) in the area of left mPFC, and a negative correlation between the decreased FC strength and the score of HADS anxiety subscale (r = −0.5252, P = 0.0252). Conclusion Patients with CP/CPPS had alterations in brain function, which consisted of the default mode network's compromised integrity. These alterations might play a crucial role in the pathogenesis and development of CP/CPPS.
Highlights
In the urological clinic, chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) occurs in 5% to 10% of the male population [1]
Since we considered some clinical symptoms of the CP/CPPS involved in the lower urinary tract symptoms, all the participants were required to empty their urine bladders before entering the Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
The score of NIH-CPSI revealed the patients suffered from CP/CPPS in the situation between moderate and severe edge, for a score above 18 means severe chronic prostatitis
Summary
Chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) occurs in 5% to 10% of the male population [1]. According to the category of National Institutes of Health, CP/CPPS was defined as urological pain or discomfort in the pelvic region sustaining for no less than 3 months during the preceding 6 months that is associated with lower urinary symptoms and not in consort with a urinary tract bacterial infection [2]. It is regularly connected with negative cognitive, sexual, behavioral, or emotional consequences [3]. These alterations might play a crucial role in the pathogenesis and development of CP/CPPS
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