BPH Treatment

Patients diagnosed with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) will need to undergo BPH treatment. The right treatment for a patient will depend on the severity of their condition, medical history, and treatment preferences.

Patients experiencing any of the following symptoms should schedule an appointment with their primary care physician or urologist:

• Urgent or frequent need to urinate
• Difficulty starting urination
• Dribbling at the end of urination
• Needing to urinate more frequently at night
• Urinary tract infection
• Inconsistent urine stream
• Weak urine stream
• Inability to completely empty the bladder
• Inability to urinate
• Blood in the urine

Left untreated, BPH may lead to the following complications:

• Urinary retention
• Urinary tract infections
• Bladder stones
• Bladder damage
• Kidney damage

Symptoms of BPH change over time, as the prostate shrinks or becomes larger. It’s important to speak to a doctor or urologist if you experience difficulty urinating or more frequent urination, especially at night. Patients needing to go back and finish urination are at increased risk of developing urinary tract infections and bladder conditions.

Various medications have been developed to treat BPH; these include 5-alpha reductase inhibitors (5-ARIs) to shrink or slow enlargement of the prostate, and alpha blockers to relax the muscles in the prostate and bladder neck. Patients with moderate symptoms that appear stable and are not responding to lifestyle adjustments may benefit from a combination of these medications.

Patients diagnosed with mild BPH could experience improvements in symptoms after making changes to lifestyle habits. For example, consuming fewer beverages before bed and reducing overall consumption of alcohol and caffeine may improve a patient’s condition. When possible, patients should consider reducing dosages of medications such as diuretics (water pills), antihistamines, and decongestants.

Additional beneficial lifestyle changes for BPH patients may include:

• Kegel exercises
• Routine strengthening pelvic floor muscles
• Meals that include salmon, tuna, and other fish with significant amounts of omega-3 fatty acids
• Consuming a variety of green, leafy vegetables with nutrients that may naturally reduce the size of an enlarged prostate

In other cases, men may need to undergo surgery to:

• Destroy the inner part of the prostate using steam therapy (Rezum)
• Destroy excess prostate tissue using urethral tacks (UroLift)
• Allow for easier urine flow by making specific cuts into the prostate gland
• Remove all of the prostate, except the outer portion

All of these procedures are minimally invasive.

Surgery may be necessary if symptoms worsen to the point where it’s difficult or impossible to urinate. Surgery may involve removal of the prostate tissues causing the obstruction, also called transurethral resection of the prostate. This is one of the more common procedures performed. Another option is laser surgery, which involves creating a channel for the urethra to allow for a better flow of urine.