OBJECTIVETo explore the correlation between the content of lecithin mass and white blood cells (WBC) of the expressed prostatic secretion (EPS) and the concentration of serum PSA in patients with prostatitis, and to study the difference in serum PSA concentration between patients with bacterial prostatitis and those with nonbacterial prostatitis.

METHODSThe serum PSA concentration in 62 patients with prostatitis and 22 controls were measured with ELISA method. The correlation between the content of lecithin mass and WBC of the EPS and the elevation of serum PSA was analyzed. And the serum PSA concentration of bacterial prostatitis (9 patients) and that of nonbacterial inflammatory prostatitis (53 patients) were compared.

RESULTSThe mean concentrations of serum PSA in the prostatitis and the control groups were (1.79 +/- 0.68) microg/L and (0.63 +/- 0.29) microg/L, respectively. The difference of the serum PSA concentration was significant between the prostatitis and the control groups (P < 0.001) as well as between the groups with higher and lower WBC contents in EPS (P < 0.05), but not between the groups with higher (27 patients) and lower (35 patients) lecithin mass contents in EPS (P > 0.05), nor between the groups of bacterial prostatitis and nonbacterial prostatitis (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONProstatitis may cause the elevation of serum PSA concentration. The elevated serum PSA correlates with the content of white blood cells in EPS, but not with the content of lecithin mass in EPS, nor with the type of prostatitis, either bacterial or nonbacterial.