If you are wondering why you urinate your semen, the answer is that you have what is called retrograde ejaculation. It’s an ejaculation that goes up towards your bladder instead of exiting through the urethra out of the penis.

In retrograde ejaculation, the part of the bladder that normally closes during ejaculation (the bladder neck) remains open, driving semen in a retrograde direction, i.e. back towards the bladder rather than expelling it completely out of the penis. 

Medical review by Marie-Lyssa Lafontaine, medical student, urology axis, University of Montreal, 11/28/2022

One of the most common causes?

Surgery of your prostate by natural means (TURP or scraping) to treat severe prostate BPH. A BPH or enlarged prostate is an increase in the volume of the prostate of non-cancerous origin. However, it is impossible to predict before this intervention, if the retrograde ejaculation will be total or not. Radiation therapy to treat prostate cancer can also cause this side effect.

Other causes

• Medications: Certain medications used to treat conditions such as high blood pressure, prostate enlargement, or certain mental health disorders can affect the muscles that control the release of semen.
• Nervous system disorders: Conditions like diabetes, multiple sclerosis, or spinal cord injuries can interfere with the proper functioning of the muscles involved in ejaculation.
• Congenital conditions: Rarely, some individuals may have a congenital abnormality where the bladder neck does not close properly during ejaculation.

Your orgasm

The orgasm remains however present, just like the mechanism of the expulsion of your sperm (with the contraction of your muscles of the perineal area). If retrograde ejaculation is not complete, some of your semen may travel up into your bladder while the other follows the normal path of ejaculation through your penis.

Common Signs – You will notice:

• You produce little or no sperm when you have an orgasm
• You have cloudy urine after orgasm
• You have fertility problems if you are trying to conceive*

*If this is the case, be sure to inform your doctor.

Treatment

Medications usually won’t help if retrograde ejaculation is due to a procedure that causes permanent physical changes to your anatomy. Examples include bladder neck surgery, transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP), and, in the case of prostate cancer treatment, radiation therapy to your prostate. That said, before any treatment or intervention, it is important to fully understand the side effects, in order to avoid any surprises. 

Otherwise, talk to your doctor to better understand what could lead up to this condition. He can determine the underlying cause and recommend appropriate treatment options if necessary.

Take the time to visit each of our pages on this website, as well as our YouTube channel, in order to get familiar with the disease, our expert lectures and webinars, our section on available resources, the support that is offered to you, our events and ways to get involved in advancing the cause.

You have questions or concerns? Don’t hesitate. You can chat with us or contact us at 1-855-899-2873 to discuss with one of our nurses specialized in uro-oncology. They are there to listen, support and answer your questions, as well as those of your family or loved ones. It’s simple and free, like all of our other services.

Webinar to review
Prostate Cancer: Your test preparation, procedures and results
Biopsy, understand your report

Pages of our site that might interest you
Want to know more? Just click on the link below.
Coping with prostate cancer

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If I had been given the choice
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Written by PROCURE. © All rights reserved – 2022