Short and long-term effectiveness of external shock wave therapy for chronic pelvic pain syndrome in men

Introduction: Chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS) is a frequent urological diagnosis that affects men’s quality of life. Extracorporeal shockwave therapy (ESWT) is a recent treatment option for patients with CPPS. We evaluated ESWT’s short and long–term efficacy in managing CPPS. Methods: This prospective self-controlled study included 75 patients diagnosed with CPPS at our tertiary pelvic pain clinic between January 2017-June 2019. Patients were referred for ESWT and received four sessions one week apart. The National Institute for Health–Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (NIH–CPSI) questionnaire was used to assess patients’ symptom severity before starting therapy and at 0, 12 and 26 weeks after completing ESWT. Demographics, clinical data and complications were also recorded. Results: Patients’ mean age was 37.9 ± 8.6 years, and mean duration of symptoms was 5 ± 4.5 years. Compared to pre-treatment scores, all patients exhibited improvements across all NIH–CPSI domains directly after completing ESWT (week 0 post-treatment), with a mean difference improvement of 9.26 ± 5.7, 5.2 ± 3.4, 1.19 ± 2.18 and 2.88 ± 2.46 points in the total, pain, urinary symptoms, and quality-of-life scores respectively. At 12 weeks after completing ESWT, 80.9% of patients reported improvements, with mean difference improvement of 8.07 ± 7.56, 4.55 ± 4.6, 0.76 ± 2.48, 2.85 ± 2.78 in the total, pain, urinary symptoms, and quality-of-life scores respectively. Again, none of the patients developed any treatment-related complications. At 26 weeks after completing ESWT, 82.4% of patients reported improvements, with mean difference improvement of 8.29 ± 7.7%, 4.92 ± 4.69, 0.75 ± 2.96, 2.5 ± 3.0 in total, pain, urinary symptoms, and quality-of-life scores respectively. None of the patients developed treatment-related complications. Conclusions: ESWT is a safe and effective treatment modality for patients with CPPS, with short-term improvement in total, pain, urinary symptom, and quality-of-life scores; and long-term improvement in total, pain, and quality-of-life scores.