Transcatheter Arterial Embolization for Chronic Prostatitis/Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome: A Retrospective Study of 44 Patients

Purpose: To investigate the preliminary treatment outcomes of transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) for chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS).

Materials and methods: This retrospective study included patients with refractory CP/CPPS who underwent TAE between April 2022 and February 2023. All patients had persistent pelvic pain for at least 3 months, a total score of at least 15 on the NIH-Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (NIH-CPSI), and lacked evidence of infection. All procedures were performed by injecting imipenem/cilastatin sodium (IPM/CS) from bilateral prostatic arteries ± internal pudendal arteries. NIH-CPSI, pain numeric rating scale (NRS), and complications were evaluated at 1, 3, and 6 months after the initial TAE and at the final follow-up.

Results: Out of 48 patients, 44 were included in this study, with four excluded because of loss of follow-up. No severe procedure-related complications were observed. Pretreatment and post-treatment evaluations at 1, 3, and 6 months after the initial TAE and at the final follow-up (mean 16.6 months) revealed a decrease in the mean NIH-CPSI scores from 27 ± 6 to 21 ± 8, 20 ± 9, 17 ± 9, and 18 ± 9, respectively (all P < 0.001). Pain NRS scores were also decreased from 7.0 ± 1.6 to 4.8 ± 2.5, 4.1 ± 2.6, 3.7 ± 2.4, and 3.4 ± 2.3, respectively (all P < 0.001). The proportions of clinical success, defined as a reduction of at least 6 points from baseline in the NIH-CPSI, at 6 months after TAE and at the final follow-up were 70 and 64%, respectively.

Conclusions: This study provides evidence of the feasibility of TAE using IPM/CS for CP/CPPS, suggesting both symptomatic improvement and safety.