Quoting Playful Kitten:
This procedure is also called "the Microwave procedure." Arectal probe will have a temperature of 100 degrees F. for about an hour, in which the heat helps the tissue around the prostate to slough off and shrink the enlarged prostate to have easier urination. This treatment IS NOT PAINFUL, you might have a strange feeling in your rectum(pressure or fullness) dysuria or hematuria afterwards. This procedure is very cost effective, no overnight hospital stays, CAN BE DONE IN THE UROLOGIST'S OFFICE and then you can go home. The TURP surgical procedure is more expensive, reguires hospitalization, you have increased hematuria with some blood clots too, along with Foley catheter irrigations at intervals. It can be scary for you men, especially if you are not forwarned ahead of time (Excellent Pre-Op Teaching BTW). You gentlemen can also take the medications Proscar & Propecia for BPH which are 75% effective. The FDA has approved Flomax, Hytrin, Cardura & Cardura XL which help to relax the muscles in the neck of the bladder for easier urination. Please don't be embrassed to go see your urologist if you have any signs or symptoms of BPH-dribbling small amounts of urine, not emptying your bladder completely ect... The help is there to easy your urination!
This information is completely inaccurate. This procedure was used for a very short while by some urologists. The baking CANcause damage to the nerves in the way of the prostate and this will cause impotence, potentially incurable and untreatable impotence.
The oral meds available for prostate issues are all derivatives of failed heart or blood pressure drugs. The provide minimal levels of relief and are very expensive. It will cost in the neighborhood of $1000 per year in the US for one of these medications. They all have nasty side effects, the most bothersome of which is impotence. 10-12% of men taking Proscar or Propecia in the doses needed for help with BPH will experience impotence; all men will experience lowered libido. It is the nature of the drugs; they are testosterone blocking agents.
There are a number of half-assed procedures which can create a 5-6 point reduction in the bother score. When your bother score is, as mine was, 26 a minor reduction still leaves you a candidate for a TURP.
The Trans-Urethral Resection of Prostate is a well-established and well tolerated procedure. There are some possible bad consequences as some men have temporary impotence and or incontinence from the procedure. Over 95% of men who have a TURP are fully recovered and fully functioning within six weeks. There is also an issue with some patients needing blood transfusions and some developing a potentially lethal complication called TRUP syndrome.
The logical alternative is one of the various laser procedures for reduction of the prostate. My urologist uses both the Biolitec Holmium Laser and the Evolve Laser. We chose the Evolve procedure for me. The actual surgery took about one hour. I watched part of it on the monitor. As the wound is cauterized as the cutting is done, there is minimal bleeding. My doctor sent me home with a catheter for the weekend, but many do not use one at all. The laser procedures are usually done on an in office basis, but may be done outpatient or day surgery depending on the urologist's preference and the individual patient's circumstances.
All of the effective remedies (and some of the ineffective ones too) have a high incidence of retrograde ejaculation as an undesirable aftereffect. As a consequence men who wish to have children should bank some sperm before hand.
I have spent literally thousands of hours researching the prostate sinceI started having problems. I probably know more about BPH than most general physicians.
Men, if you are having issues with your prostate, get yourself to a urologist who is up to date and uses laser surgery. He will evaluate your condition with interview, probably some voiding studies, a cystoscope, ultrasound, perhaps a CT scan, PSA and other tests in some cases. He will want to rule out prostate cancer. He will also need to evaluate you for prostatitis. At that point, he and you will need to make a decision on what to do. I would urge going ahead and having the issue corrected surgically, preferably with laser surgery. It will not get better. The sooner the problem is corrected, the better the results.
My bother score was 26 before my prostate was zapped. It is now less than 1.
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