When do I need surgery for BPH?
If you have Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH), that means you have an enlarged prostate gland. It’s common for your prostate to enlarge as you age, and the condition is often not serious.
However, this growth can cause your prostate gland to partially or completely block your urinary tract, causing acute or chronic urine retention. Essentially, your bladder will start to fail.
It’s also worth knowing that occasionally small prostates can also cause a blockage to flow by kinking the water pipe.
Men who have urinary retention often:
- Look extremely bloated in the belly
- Leak urine during their sleep
- Are prone to urinary infection and bladder stones
- Are in danger of kidney failure due to a pressure build up
So, the question is, how bothersome is your enlarged prostate? At an advanced stage, you’d obviously want surgical intervention to relieve these symptoms.
But it could be that the partial blockage isn’t really troubling you at all or that medication is making your symptoms manageable. In that case, the risks of invasive surgery may outweigh the benefits.
Before making any decisions, we’ll want to:
- Conduct a transrectal ultrasound to investigate the size and shape of your prostate
- Check your urine flow and bladder function
- Perform a blood test to measure your PSA
- Check your urine to exclude infection or blood
All men’s PSA levels tend to naturally rise, year on year. If you have a big prostate, your PSA will be higher, and that doesn’t necessarily mean you have prostate cancer. Patients often get biopsied for cancer unnecessarily when, really, they just have a large prostate and a higher PSA.
If you do need treatment, BPS offers all the latest options.
Many men are recommended medications such as Tamsulosin, Finasteride and anticholinergics, which all have side effects, and you may need to be on these for years.
The right surgical intervention takes about an hour and could resolve your urinary issues long-term. We’ll be here to advise you based on what’s right for your condition.
Ready to take the next step?
If you have worrying symptoms you’d like to get checked, need a second opinion or just want a free chat with one of our nurse specialists, get in touch. Our friendly team will take care of the rest.