Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy (Bph) And Diseases Of The Prostate:

Prostate diseases are common in men as they age. The prostate gland is a small walnut-shaped gland that sits below the bladder. Through it passes the urethra which is a tube that carries urine from the bladder out the penis. As a man ages, the prostate gland enlarges in size and can cause symptoms of urinary obstruction. In addition, the enlarged prostate gland, as well as the prostate gland in younger men, can be involved with prostatitis which is an inflammation or infection within the prostate gland. This is usually treated with antibiotics. Symptoms of both these conditions would include frequency of urination, urgent urination, slowing of the urinary stream, urinary incontinence, retention, and frequent urination at night. The Section of Urology offers all contemporary treatment options for the treatment of BPH.

Medical therapies do exist for treatment of BPH and these include alpha blockers, such as Hytrin, Cardura, and Flomax which are drugs designed to decrease the resistance at the level of the prostate by relaxing smooth muscle fibers around the prostate such that flow is improved.

Proscar is a drug that actually shrinks the prostate. This does take some time, usually 8-12 months, and is usually beneficial for those men who have larger prostates.

For those men who are not interested in conservative therapy or who have failed conservative therapy, surgical options are available as indicated below.

TRANSURETHRAL RESECTION OF THE PROSTATE (TURP): This is a surgical procedure through the natural opening of the penis done with anesthesia wherein the obstructing portion of the prostate gland is resected or removed.

TRANSURETHRAL INCISION OF THE PROSTATE (TUIP): For smaller sized prostate glands in younger men, this is a procedure that merely incises or cuts the prostate, allowing it to spring open to alleviate the symptoms.

TRANSURETHRAL VAPORIZATION OF THE PROSTATE (TUVP): This is also a surgical procedure done with anesthesia through the natural opening of the penis whereby the tissue is vaporized rather than resected or removed.

LASER PROSTATECTOMY: This procedure is similar to TUVP, but the prostate tissue is destroyed by laser energy.  It is usually associated with less bleeding.

TRANSURETHRAL NEEDLE ABLATION OF THE PROSTATE (TUNA): This is a minor procedure done under intravenous sedation through the natural opening of the penis whereby the obstructing portion of the prostate is not resected or cut, but is heated using radiofrequency waves. The Section of Urology was one of the first in the area to use thermotherapy or heating techniques to treat BPH. For more information, click here!

OPEN PROSTATECTOMY: This is a surgical procedure done through an incision in the lower abdomen for treatment of BPH, usually for men who have extremely large prostates.