Q: I am a 34 years old man experiencing pain in my left testicles for over a year. I consulted a general physician who asked me to take an antibiotics course and some painkillers, which didn't help much. Then I consulted another physician who asked me to take Banocide/Hetrazan and this helped easing my pain. However, I have again started experiencing the pain. A surgeon told me that it is a probable case of epididymitis. Then I consulted a urologist who advised me to take Veltam (0.4mg) for 15 days. Though there is no pain, my urine frequency has increased. My BP is around 140/85 and sugar levels are normal. Does Veltam treat BPH? Can I have BPH at 35 years of age? What do I do to ease my testicular pain?

A:Tamsulosin (active ingredient in the tablet in question - Veltam) does not treat BPH. It relaxes smooth muscles at bladder neck thus easing the urine flow though it. The medication needs to be repeated every 24 hours till needed. It is unlikely that you have BPH. The likelihood of chronic prostatitis or CPPS (chronic pelvic pain syndrome), though, is high with prevalence of approximately 15% in young population. Your main problem, it seems, is left scrotal pain. You need a thorough evaluation with history and examination to exclude local conditions like neuralgic pains, hernia and varicocoele, apart from chronic epididymitis. The pain can also be referred from ureteric stones and bladder neck conditions like prostatitis and bladder stones. Discuss these with your doctor and he would be able to answer your queries.