Enlarged prostate treatments
Our urologists have additional fellowship training in specialty areas of urology. This extra training gives them special expertise in prostate conditions so they can offer the best BPH treatments available.
Your care may include:
- Medications and lifestyle changes
- Urolift® System
- GreenLightâ„¢ Laser Therapy
- Aquablation®
- Transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP)
- Robotic surgery for severe prostate enlargement
Many people can manage BPH with lifestyle changes or medications. Our doctors discuss your options with you to help you choose a BPH treatment that works with your lifestyle and preferences.
Urolift is an outpatient, minimally invasive treatment for benign prostate enlargement. It doesn’t destroy or remove prostate tissue. Instead, Urolift uses permanent implants that lift enlarged prostate tissue out of the way for proper urine flow.
Because doctors use instruments that go through the urethra, you don’t need incisions. Urolift also has a low risk of side effects. Most people notice results immediately after the procedure.
GreenLightâ„¢ uses laser technology to remove excess prostate tissue. During this minimally invasive procedure, doctors access the tissue through the urethra. The laser also seals blood vessels as it removes the tissue, so most people have minimal bleeding.
GreenLight™ requires no incisions or overnight hospital stay. Doctors usually perform this procedure in an operating room with spinal anesthesia, though they may use general anesthesia. In most cases, you’ll notice BPH relief soon after the procedure.
Aquablation uses a heat-free waterjet to remove excess prostate tissue with exceptional precision. This leading-edge BPH treatment combines the steadiness of a robotic tool with real-time ultrasound imaging.
Our urologists perform Aquablation in an operating room with general anesthesia. The waterjet is a slim tool that goes in the urethra, so there are no incisions.
You stay overnight in the hospital, and most patients go home without a catheter the next day. Penn is one of the few health systems in the area to offer this advanced therapy.
Real-time ultrasound images allow your surgeon to clearly see which areas of the prostate to remove. Then, your surgeon can map the treatment areas to avoid the parts of the prostate that control sexual and urinary function.
With this level of accuracy, you have a lower risk of side effects like erectile dysfunction (ED) and incontinence. You also get effective relief from urinary problems such as:
- Frequency
- Nocturia (need to urinate frequently at night)
- Pain or stinging during urination
- Straining
- Urgency
- Weak stream
TURP is surgery to remove excess prostate tissue:
- Doctors insert a wire loop (a resectoscope) through the urethra to access the prostate.
- Then, the wire loop delivers an electric current that trims away the extra tissue.
TURP requires general or spinal anesthesia. You undergo the procedure in an operating room.
If prostate enlargement is severe, our doctors can perform BPH surgery robotically to remove excess tissue. Robotic BPH surgery allows for smaller incisions and faster recoveries than traditional open surgery.