Most men would rather deal with hematospermia in silence than announce it. Fortunately the condition is hardly life threatening. Blood in your semen need not dampen your sex lifeFirst Published in the City Press of May 29 2005
It is one thing to worry about whether your sperm cells are good swimmers or not, but to find blood ·
in your semen is something else. However experts say there is no need for panic.
A few months ago, Frank* made a startling discovery that nearly put an end to his sex life. After a torrid night of passion, he had stepped into the little corner to flush out the rubber and refresh himself for another session.
To his horror, he noted that the condom was filled with blood instead of the milky semen that should have been there. Panicky, his first thought was that he must have injured himself while they were at it, because the romp had been a little bit rough and it had been going on for a while.
Quickly he scrubbed himself and did a thorough check of his member to locate the source of the bleeding, but found none. After a careful peek at the tip of his urethra, he noticed some specks of reddish substance and a little squeeze brought with it the last dregs of semen and with it some clots.
‘‘I was totally freaked out,’’ he said. ‘‘At first I thought it must be some internal injury, and then I thought I must have broken something inside my testis. Then I thought it must surely be some nasty STD (sexually transmitted disease) that I had pick ed up and had got worse without me knowing.’’
His mood and member dampened, he retreated beneath the sheets, unable to tell his girl why he was no
longer interested, debating whether to go see a doctor or wait and see ‘‘The thing was, I was feeling no
pain, so I decided to just wait and see,’’ he said.
A few weeks later it happened ‘‘This time I was scared shitless,’’ he said, ‘‘That’s when I decided to know what this thing was.’’
What Frank, and most men don’t know, was that this condition is called hemospermia, also known as hematospermia. It is defined as the ·presence of blood in the seminal fluid. Though it is not uncommon, it may affect men of any age after puberty.
The true cause of it is not very well known and doctors still grapple with it, said Dr Elna McIntosh, Health24 sexologist.
The cause varies ‘‘but it most probably occurs in the prostate and could congenital’’ said Dr Shingai Mutambi, urologist at Clinix Hospital in Soweto.
‘‘The etiology (cause) is not specifically known and is poorly understood. Most commonly, it results from on-specific inflammation of the urethra, prostate, and/or seminal vesicles,’’ explained McIntosh. Semen originates from these areas including the epididymis, vas deferens, seminal vesicles, and the cause of the bleeding might be in any of these.
That not withstanding, this symptom is very worrying to those who experience it occurs to, even though it is not life threatening ‘‘It is a disconcerting symptom that produces extreme anxiety in sexually active males,’’ said McIntosh.
‘‘Most men with hemospermia are in their 30s and it almost always reasolves spontaneously, usually within several weeks,’’ she explained. ‘‘Patients that have persistent hemospermia for more than three weeks should undergo further urologic evaluation to identify the specific cause,’’ she advised.
Mutambi concurs. He said for men in their 20s and 30s, there’s no need to worry much because it always goes away after a few weeks, and there’s no threat of them not being able to father a child, he confirmed.
To men in their 40s though, he recommended a thorough examination because this might herald some sort of infection or a problem with the prostate where cancer is not excluded. ‘‘The physical exam should include a genital recatal exam, PSA (blood test), urine cytology and a blood pressure test.
Some urologists recommend transrectal ultrasound to look for stones and cysts in the prostate, seminal vesicles and ejaculatory ducts. This may also help rule out prostate cancer,’’ advised McIntosh.‘‘Other urologists recommend cystoscopy’’ she said, where a tubular instrument equipped with a light is used to examine the interior of the urinary bladder and urethra.
‘‘Overall, hemospermia almost always resolves spontaneously and rarely is associated with significant urinary pathology.
Unless a specific cause is found, most cases are managed expectantly,’’ she concluded.
For Frank, even though he saw a doctor and did all the recommended tests, it still worries him to see blood in his semen, which he thinks is not natural and indicates that something must surely be wrong. Whatever the case, ‘‘I just hope it’s nothing serious,’’ he said.
*Name withheld
