Treatments and drugs

Epididymitis caused by a sexually transmitted disease (STD) or other infection is treated with antibiotic medications. Your sexual partner will also need treatment. Make sure your doctor is aware of any other medications you're taking or any allergies you have. This information, as well as determining what type of infection you have, will help your doctor select the best treatment.

Be sure to take the entire course of antibiotics prescribed by your doctor, even though you may get relief from your symptoms in two to three days after you start treatment. If you're not feeling better in that time, contact your doctor. When you've finished your medication, it's a good idea to return to your doctor for a follow-up visit to be sure that the infection has cleared up.

In most cases, symptoms improve after a few days of antibiotics. If your symptoms don't improve as expected, your doctor may try another antibiotic. If symptoms still don't improve, your doctor may do further tests to determine whether your epididymitis is caused by something other than a bacterial infection or STD.

If a pocket of pus (abscess) has formed, it may need to be drained, and in some cases part or all of the epididymis needs to be removed surgically. Surgery is sometimes necessary if epididymitis is due to underlying physical defects or if epididymitis is caused by tuberculosis.

If you are being treated for epididymitis, your doctor may suggest that you try the following measures to relieve discomfort and help healing:

• Rest in bed for a day or two.
• Elevate your scrotum with a towel.
• Apply ice packs to the painful area.
• Drink plenty of fluids, especially water.
• Take a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, such as ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin and others) or naproxen (Aleve, Naprosyn and others), to relieve pain and inflammation.

People with severe pain in the scrotum may need a stronger pain medication, such as acetaminophen (Tylenol) with codeine. If this is not effective, the doctor may inject anesthetic medication directly into the painful area.

Medications to relax associated muscles

Medications to alter nerve messages to the scrotum

Anaesthetic or steroid injections into the scrotum

Stress management techniques

Antibiotic drugs most commonly used to treat bacterial orchitis include ceftriaxone (Rocephin), ciprofloxacin (Cipro), doxycycline (Vibramycin, Doryx), azithromycin (Zithromax), and trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole combined (Bactrim, Septra) and Levaquin. Make sure your doctor is aware of any other medications you're taking or any allergies you have. This information, as well as whether your infection is sexually transmitted and what type of STD you have, will help your doctor select the best treatment.

Be sure to take the entire course of antibiotics recommended by your doctor. Even if your symptoms clear up sooner, complete the course to ensure that the infection has been eradicated.