HWN Suggests

Alternatives to Surgery for an Enlarged Prostate

There are also now minimally invasive techniques to reduce the pressure exerted on the urethra by an enlarged prostate. In one, called the UroLift System, a telescope-like instrument is inserted through the penis and one or more small bands are inserted to retract the part of prostate that is pressing on the urethra. It is usually done in a urologist’s office as an outpatient procedure under local anesthesia and is supposed to result in immediate symptom relief with minimal risk of sexual side effects...

Keep in mind that most of the data about the success of UroLift and Rezum, including reports from patients, come from their manufacturers. If you are considering one of these, it would…

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 Is a Minimally Invasive Procedure Effective for Enlarged Prostates?

“We cannot beat TURP” when efficacy alone is considered, says Jens Sønksen, a professor of urology at the University of Copenhagen and principal investigator on the study. But when overall benefit of the procedure was quantified on a rating scale devised by the researchers, UroLift scored significantly higher, he says. The researcher-devised scale included sexual side effects and overall quality of life.

Articles of Interest

'My prostate problem left me terrified of getting caught short until a half-hour £3,850 procedure gave me back my life'

Martin adds: "Urolift is non-invasive and it gives you your life back. I have been paying private health insurance for 30 years and sometimes I used to think that if I had not paid it, I would have saved all that money, but now that I am older I realise it is money well spent. I was fortunate to have it and for anyone who can afford this procedure I couldn't recommend it highly enough."

New procedure a ‘game changer’ when treating enlarged prostates

“I’ve had some actually come up and high five me after getting it done,” he said.

The UroLift implant: mechanism behind rapid and durable relief from prostatic obstruction

These studies reveal the lack of impact the device has on systemic tissue, providing evidence that the UroLift System is benign and biocompatible, and offering histologic explanation for the clinically observed durability.

Urethral Lift as a Safe and Effective Procedure for Prostatic Hyplasia Population: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

PUL appears to be a safe and effective procedure in selected patients with BPH and can improve the symptoms of urinary tract obstruction. However, it is not as effective as TURP and shows no influence to the objective indicators like PVR.

Why urolift is bad?

The cons of Urolift compared to TURP is that improvement in symptoms is typically not as good as it is with TURP, in particular for men with larger prostates. There is a fundamental trade-off between minimally invasive treatment such as Urolift and surgery such as TURP or laser ablation of the prostate.

Resources

UroLift

Treatment with the UroLift® System is typically a one-time, in-office solution that provides rapid relief and recovery for men living with symptoms of an enlarged prostate.