PROSTATE PROBLEM VAPORIZED
If you're a man over 50, you have a 50 percent chance of developing benign prostatic hyperplasia, or enlargement of the prostate. The good news is you may not have to resort to the standard complicated surgeries to treat the problem.
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Executive Patrick Trischitta spends a lot of time sitting down, but a medical condition made sitting more than 20 minutes unbearable.
Patrick Trischitta
"I would be thinking, when could I excuse myself to go to the men's room?"
Patrick suffered from BPH -- an enlarged prostate. Medication wasn't enough, but surgery was more than he wanted.
Patrick Trischitta
Had BPH
"Doctors, many years ago, said I was due for surgery, and I avoided that, but I knew it was inevitable."
Urologist Alexis Te solved his problem with photoselective vaporization of the prostate. PVP uses a high-powered laser to vaporize only the problematic prostate tissue. This clears up any obstruction with minimal blood loss.
Alexis Te, M.D.
Urologist
Cornell Medical College/New York-Presbyterian Hospital
New York City
"This therapy really challenges your traditional surgery to get you the same type of results and improvements, but at the same time, with a much safer way of doing it with quicker recovery."
A six-center study on the technique shows promising results.
Alexis Te, M.D.
"These patients had a greater than 90-percent improvement in their symptoms, in their urinary flow rate, and 90 percent of them experienced a significant increase in their quality of life."
Patrick Trischitta
"Six months after the surgery, I was to the point where I was in my 20's before I even knew I had a prostate."
Thanks to PVP, Patrick doesn't have to walk in the shadow of BPH anymore.
Two million men in the United States are receiving treatment for BPH. Medication is usually the first line of defense to shrink or relax the prostate, but studies show they're only successful in 60 percent of cases.
WHAT IS BPH? According to the American Urological Association, benign prostate hyperplasia, or enlargement of the prostate, affects more than 50 million men in the United States. Men over age 50 have a 50-percent chance of having BPH, while men over age 80 have a 90-percent chance of having the condition. While the exact cause of BPH is still unknown, it is thought to be a natural part of the aging process in men, and thus, a very common condition. Current estimates show about 2 million men currently receive treatment for BPH. Symptoms of BPH vary and can worsen over time as the prostate gland continues to enlarge. Common symptoms include urinary frequency, waking up at night to urinate, and a slow urinary stream. As the size of the prostate gland increases, it squeezes the urethra, causing a multitude of urinary problems. If left untreated, BPH can cause bladder infections, bladder stones, and, in rare cases, kidney damage. Upon diagnosis of BPH, men typically undergo a period of "watchful waiting," as a urologist tracks the increasing size of the prostate and monitors the severity of the symptoms. Medications are usually the first line of proactive treatment to shrink or relax the prostate. However, they are only successful in 60 percent of cases.
STANDARD SURGERY: The standard treatment option, transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP), is an invasive procedure that requires three to five days of hospitalization and can lead to more serious complications such as bleeding, urinary incontinence and impotence. More than 40,000 TURPs are performed each year, and it is the second most common operation performed on men over age 60 in the United States.
PVP SURGERY: Researchers say Photoselective Vaporization of the Prostate is a proven, safe and effective treatment for BPH. Alexis E. Te, M.D., from New York-Presbyterian Hospital and Weil Cornell Medical College, says, "The first significant advance in the treatment of BPH in 50 years, this new laser technique greatly decreases the risk of serious complications from the surgery and allows patients to be immediately free of symptoms and quickly return to work."
Researchers found significant and immediate reduction in symptoms (23.9 percent to 2.6 percent) and prostate volume (55.1g to 30.3g) -- with all patients discharged without significant complications within 23 hours. Patients had a more than 90-percent improvement in their symptoms and urinary flow rate, and 90 percent of them experienced a significant increase in their quality of life. New York-
Presbyterian Hospital is one of six sites now performing the FDA-approved procedure. PVP uses a high-powered laser -- called the green light laser -- to vaporize the desired prostate tissue, without harming other tissue. Thus, the procedure clears up any obstruction with minimal blood loss. Depending on the size of the enlarged prostate gland, the surgery can last from 20 minutes to 50 minutes, and can be performed under local anesthetic on an outpatient basis. Dr. Te has performed the surgery on more than 150 men and cautions that some patients who have been blocked for a long time may be limited in their outcome. However, he says the procedure is much safer than standard surgeries, and he's even performed it successfully on centenarians.
Weil Medical College of Cornell University
www.med.cornell.edu
Copyright © 2003 Ivanhoe Broadcast News, Inc.
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