The best thing about benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH), an enlarged prostate, is that it’s unrelated to cancer. That’s a relief. Now comes the daily nuisance created when an enlarged prostate blocks the urethra – abnormal urination that can overwhelm your day (or night).
When medication doesn’t work, doctors can choose from close to a dozen minimally invasive procedures to relieve pressure on the urethra and restore a more normal urination routine. Rezūm™ is a new technology that uses thermal energy to remove extra tissue cells generated in the prostate by BPH.
The Problem
The prostate, a walnut-shaped gland, is part of the male reproductive system that produces fluid for semen. It surrounds the urethra, a tubular duct that transports urine from the bladder out of the body. As men age, the prostate can become enlarged – though not cancerous – as part of a condition called benign prostatic hypertrophy. (The prostate actually has two growth periods. In puberty, the prostate’s size doubles. The second growth period begins about age 25 and extends through most of a man’s life.)
Studies suggest the prostate’s enlargement in older men is caused by decreased levels of active testosterone, a male hormone, in their blood. That leaves a higher percentage of estrogen – a female hormone that men produce in small quantities throughout their lives – in their blood, which can eventually promote prostate cell growth.
The Symptoms
More than 70 percent of men in their 60s or older experience some of these lower urinary tract symptoms attributed to benign prostatic hyperplasia:
- Frequent urination (eight or more times a day).
- Urgent feeling that you have to urinate.
- Weak or slow urinary stream.
- Dribbling at end of urination.
- Urinary stream that stops and starts.
- Difficulty or delay in starting urination.
- Urinary retention.
- A feeling that you cannot empty your bladder.
- Nocturia (frequent urination during sleep periods).
- Urinary incontinence.
- Urine with unusual color or smell.
How Rezūm™ Works
Our team of expert urologists can perform Rezūm™, a minimally-invasive procedure to help restore your urinary function.
The Procedure:
- The urologist uses a handheld device that uses radiofrequency power to generate thermal energy steam.
- The device is placed into the urethra in the penis and the doctor releases controlled doses of wet thermal energy to targeted areas of the prostate gland and the constricting tissue.
- The condensation releases the stored thermal energy to the tissue cells.
- The device is removed
- Targeted tissue is absorbed by the body over a few weeks.
Recovery
Most patients can go home after the procedure and do not require a catheter. Many experience relief of their BPH symptoms within a week or two. Side effects can include: urinary frequency or urgency; transient fluid retention; persistent urinary symptoms, stricture or contracture; painful urination; blood in semen; decreased ejaculate volume; or injury to urethra, bladder or ureteral orifices.
Your provider will let you know when you can resume physical activities.