BPH Surgery
Approximately 300,000 men have BPH surgery each year. In fact, most Western men will eventually suffer from the symptoms of an enlarged prostate, otherwise known as 'benign prostatic hypertrophy,' 'benign prostatic hyperplasia,' or just BPH.
Your urologolist will likely suggest that you treat it with surgery, like mine did. I was booked twice for emergency surgery and canceled both times. I thoroughly researched the side effects of BPH surgery and, fortunately for me, I saw that there is a whole set of real risks and side effects.
These are often downplayed or minimized by urologists making you the guinea pig with very possible impotence and incontinence as a result!
Furthermore you will often have to repeat the operation later on as your prostate continues to grow because the real causes of this prostate disease have not been addressed by radical surgeries.
I have healed my prostate without surgery, and so can you!
More about BPH Surgery
There are several kinds of BPH surgery.
- TUIP (transurethral incision of the prostate) widens the urethra, where it joins the bladder and the prostate, by making a few small cuts in the bladder neck without actually removing the whole prostate. The TUIP is a BPH surgery for men with smaller prostates. It doesn’t usually require an overnight stay.
- TURP surgery (transurethral resection of the prostate) is the standard operation used in 90% of all BPH surgeries. A flexible instrument is inserted into your penis and into the swollen prostrate gland to electrosurgically shave off pieces of the prostate, removing it in pieces. The operation is done under general or spinal anesthesia; you will usually spend a couple of days recovering and will have to wear a catheter for some time.
- BPH Laser Surgery is also done through the urethra with a cystoscope (camera) and uses lasers to removed prostate tissue. There are a few different lasers, or laser wavelengths, that can be used depending on the tissue to be removed. Generally, it is agreed that when done well, it has fewer side effects and a short catheterization term, but if your doctor uses the wrong laser, there could be unwanted side effects after the surgery. Research and ask questions of your doctor if you opt for this!
- Simple or Partial Prostatectomy is the removal of the inner portion of the prostate through an incision in the lower abdomen. This is an open and invasive BPH surgery used for very large prostate glands to remove the enlarged part of the prostate while the patient is under general anesthesia. (This surgery should not be confused with a radical prostatectomy, in which the entire prostate gland is removed for men with prostate cancer.)
It would be great if that was all there was to it. Yet, it's not so simple...
BPH Surgery Side Effects
All of the above procedures have serious potential side effects that can impact your life as much as or more than the symptoms you already have as a result of your enlarged prostate. Doctors downplay the side effects of BPH surgeries because as they have a vested interest in the procedures AND are not informed about any alternative methods. In fact, your doctor will likely dismiss alternative treatments as useless. I’m living proof that they aren’t!
The traditional TURP, which is used for 90% of all BPH surgeries, has a high risk (80%) of retrograde ejaculation, which is when semen works its way back into the bladder instead of coming out the tip of the penis when you come.
Other risks: impotence, incontinence (loss of control over your pee), blood loss, and urinary tract infection. This procedure is now available using lasers.
I've listed all the possible side effects of conventional BPH treatments here.
Read more about BPH and medical procedures here:
- Enlarged Prostate: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia
- Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia - Symptoms, Treatment and Prevention
Read the following industry-funded sites that explain all the different procedures in greater depth. However, be wary! Despite the claims to being superior with faster recovery, many of these private “state of the art” procedures have not been proven over time to be superior to the standard TURP:
There is a whole host of what are considered to be nonsurgical BPH surgeries as well. I've written these up in a concise list on this page.
Lastly, another option is watchful waiting if your symptoms are bearable. I took this to the next level. I watchfully waited while removing the causes to allow my prostate to heal. To read more about watchful waiting, click here.
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Written by Ronald M Bazar,
~BCom, McGill University
~MBA, Harvard University
~the author of this website.
New Books by Author of This Site
Note Dear Reader...
You must change your diet by stopping those foods that are triggering your condition and replacing them with new ones that nourish you and your prostate.
Then combined with a high quality supplement, you are putting yourself on the road to healing.
There are no shortcuts. Just good changes and little by little you will get better. My books and this site tells you how.
Sleep Secrets by the author of this website.
