Why is InterStim Therapy Effective against Overactive Bladder?

Overactive Bladder (OAB) is characterized by an uncontrollable urge to urinate, a frequent need to pass urine during the day and night, accidental urine leakage, and inability to get to the bathroom in time due. This condition greatly affects quality of life by having life revolve around uncontrollable urination problems. Those afflicted avoid social functions due to fear of urine leaks, foul smell and embarrassment, wake up too many times at night to urinate, stay home to avoid public shame, or reduce food and liquid consumption to avoid triggering bladder spasms. While there are several treatment options for OAB that include medications and pelvic floor exercises, a number of patients either do not respond to these treatments or find them intolerable. For such patients, InterStim therapy offers the best hope for controlling the bladder, relieving symptoms and improving quality of life.

How Does the InterStim Procedure Relieve Overactive Bladder?

InterStim therapy is a proven, minimally invasive treatment for overactive bladder. It helps to relieve the symptoms of OAB by delivering electrical impulses to the sacral nerves (found in the tailbone area), modifying abnormal reflexes in the pelvic and sacral nerves of the pelvic floor and bladder, and altering abnormal communications between the brain and bladder. The InterStim device is implanted under the skin around the location of the sacral nerves (upper buttock) so that mild electrical impulses are generated for stimulating the sacral nerves, correcting malfunctioning nerves and improving bladder control. In fact, InterStim therapy interrupts the abnormal signals transmitted in people with overactive bladder and reduces episodes of urinary incontinence.

Why is InterStim Therapy Effective against Overactive Bladder?

Unlike other therapies, the effectiveness of InterStim therapy can be assessed by physicians and patients through a test evaluation stage before commitment to long-term therapy. Roughly 80% of patients who undergo test evaluation have a successful response and can proceed to have the InterStim device implanted. According to studies, patients with successful trial stimulation will experience 50%-90% improvement in overactive bladder symptoms after the implant has been placed. In fact, people with overactive bladder have reported significant improvements in the number of incontinence episodes per week, with the majority of patients being completely free of incontinence after InterStim therapy. There is also a major reduction in the number of times patients urinate per day after treatment, while almost all patients report improvement in quality of life after InterStim procedure.

InterStim therapy is minimally invasive in nature and completely safe and reversible. Therefore, the patient can discontinue it any time it fails to meet expectations. It also does not prevent the use of alternative treatments and can easily be combined with any other treatment for a better outcome. If you or your loved one is suffering from overactive bladder and find other treatments ineffective or intolerable, do not hesitate to ask your urologist about InterStim therapy. For more information on treating urological problems, visit St Pete Urology.

What are the risks of getting a vasectomy?

Vasectomy is a popular and effective method of family planning. It carries less risk than the equivalent of tubal ligation in women, and it provides greater efficacy. In fact, it stands out as one of the best and safest forms of contraception provided that the patient fully understands potential risks associated with the procedure. For example, a common concern with vasectomy is that a man might later change his mind about wanting to have children. Although vasectomy can be reversed, there is usually no guarantee that the reversal will be a success and the reversal surgery is also more complicated and expensive. Therefore, before you opt for a vasectomy, be certain that you do not want to father a child in the future.

So what risks are associated with a vasectomy? For most men, vasectomy does not cause noticeable side effects and rarely causes complications. Nevertheless, while vasectomy is safe and highly effective, some problems might occur after surgery and over time.

Surgical Risks

Following the procedure, most men experience mild pain, discomfort, bruising and mild swelling, all of which disappear within two weeks. However, certain problems may require the attention of a health care provider. Bleeding or hematoma (blood clot) inside the scrotum or bleeding under the skin may cause painful swelling and requires urgent medical attention. As with any surgery, the area operated on may become infected. Scrotal redness, tenderness and fever are signs of infection.

Delayed Risks

The risk of delayed problems is quite small, but they do occur. One such possibility is the presence of a granuloma (lump in the scrotum) formed from leakage of sperm out of the vas deferens and into the tissue. Another is post-vasectomy pain syndrome, a chronic pain in the testicles that occurs in a small percentage of men. A spermatocele is an abnormal cyst that develops in the epididymis and a hydrocele is a fluid-filled sac that may form around the testicle and cause swelling in the scrotum.

Vasectomy failure, although extremely rare, is known to happen. There is a 1-in-1000 risk that a vasectomy will fail. If this occurs, pregnancy may occur and a repeat procedure may be necessary.

Some men have certain unfounded concerns about vasectomies. It is important to know that a vasectomy will not affect sexual performance or cause permanent damage or severe pain to your sexual organs, nor will it increase your risk of testicular or prostate cancer or heart disease.

At St Pete Urology in St Petersburg, Florida we have offered vasectomy services for many years. We have a team of experienced, board-certified urologists and medical staff to guarantee a successful procedure. At St Pete Urology, you will get an initial consultation, treatment, recovery advice and aftercare assistance 24/7. For more information, visit St Pete Urology at our clinic or online.

Promising New Procedure for Men With Enlarged Prostates

A minimally invasive procedure designed to shrink prostate tissue with a series of nine-second blasts of steam offers men a new treatment for urinary symptoms commonly associated with enlarged prostates.

The procedure, called Rezūm (pronounced “resume”) and developed by NxThera Inc. of Maple Grove, Minn., became widely available in the U.S. in the second half of 2016. Thermal energy in the form of steam is applied to the prostate with a needle. As it cools it releases heat energy into the tissue, killing cells and shrinking the prostate overall by about a third, says Bob Paulson, NxThera’s chief executive.

Some 50% of men over the age of 50 have enlarged prostates, which can produce symptoms such as increased urgency to urinate during the day and frequent urination, which disrupts sleep at night. Sufferers often must choose between surgery or medication, both of which have side effects, including sexual dysfunction.

The NxThera therapy is the second major innovation in recent years for men with enlarged prostates. The other, an implanted device called UroLift, was introduced in the U.S. in 2013 by NeoTract Inc. of Pleasanton, Calif.

After years of little improvement in the minimally invasive treatment of enlarged prostates, men now have two new options “that leave your sexual function intact,” says Claus G. Roehrborn, a professor and chairman of the department of urology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and a co-author of published studies on both treatments.

Middle ground

Physicians say Rezūm can be used on a wider range of prostate anatomies than the UroLift implant. The procedure, which costs about $2,000 and generally is covered by insurance, can be done in a doctor’s office in just a few minutes. To dull pain, lidocaine may be injected into the prostate, and most doctors will offer a sedative for patients who want one. After the procedure, most patients need to wear a catheter for two or three days but can return to daily activities immediately.

While the results of a two-year clinical trial published by Dr. Roehrborn and colleagues show that Rezūm provides significant relief from symptoms, it isn’t clear how long the improvement will last.

“The durability issue is what’s going to sink or swim this procedure,” says study co-author Kevin T. McVary, chairman and professor of urology at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, in Springfield, Ill. Both minimally invasive options are likely less effective than surgery, Dr. Roehrborn says, because surgery removes the most tissue.

Still, for many men, the steam treatment offers an appealing middle ground between the risk of surgery and the hassle and side effects of taking daily medication, which can cause dizziness and fatigue.

“I tried Flomax for about two years but the side effects were too annoying,” says Stephen Gooding, a 60-year-old utility supervisor from Grayson, Ga., who says the drug made him dizzy and constipated. He had the Rezūm procedure in October, and now “I feel like I did 30 years ago.”

In the two-year study of 197 men, funded by NxThera and published online in the Journal of Urology in December, patients who had the Rezūm procedure showed a significantly greater improvement in symptoms at three months compared with patients who had a sham procedure. At the end of two years, patients treated with Rezūm showed a 51% reduction in urinary symptoms (as measured by a seven-question survey), compared with the beginning of the study.

Over the two years, about 4% of the patients who underwent Rezūm had to have a repeat procedure or surgery to treat their condition. Early in the trial, physicians were new at performing the procedure and didn’t always remove enough tissue, says Cindy Ogden, vice president, clinical affairs at NxThera.

So far, Rezūm appears to spare men sexual side effects. In the surgical procedure known as transurethral resection, 70% to 80% of men generally get a condition called retrograde ejaculation, also called dry orgasm, says Dr. McVary.

In the Rezūm study, about 3% of the patients who underwent the procedure experienced no ejaculatory volume afterward, and 5.3% experienced a decrease in ejaculatory volume, according to data provided by NxThera. Ejaculatory volume can fluctuate over time in men with enlarged prostates, so it isn’t clear the reductions were caused by the procedure, Dr. McVary says. Overall in the study, there was no average change in ejaculatory volume, he adds.

Larger prostates

A major advantage of Rezūm is that it can be done on most types of anatomies. UroLift isn’t approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat the median, or middle lobe of the prostate, which contributes to symptoms in about 10% to 30% of patients, Dr. Roehrborn says.

The FDA hasn’t cleared Rezūm or UroLift for prostates weighing more than 80 grams. So NxThera can’t market its procedure for larger prostates, though doctors can legally use it on such patients if they choose.

Early results in clinical practice on large prostates appear “promising” and a study on prostates up to 150 grams is expected to begin later this year, says Ricardo Gonzalez, a urologist at Texas Medical Center in Houston, who will be a principal investigator on the research. About a quarter of men seeking treatment for prostate-related urinary symptoms have prostates greater than 80 grams, he says.

Business executive Jim Bracke, 69, says that, with just a Tylenol and the lidocaine shot, discomfort from Rezūm’s steam blasts felt no more intense than “warm water spilled on the groin.” He drove himself home after the procedure, and says he’s thrilled that he no longer needs to check out a bathroom the moment he arrives at a restaurant. And as long as he doesn’t overdo it, he adds, “I can have beer, and coffee and chocolate and still sleep through the night.”

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7 Common Symptoms of Kidney Stone and Treatment Options

The symptoms of kidney stones are largely determined by the size of the stones. For small kidney stones, the symptoms may be mild. In fact, small stones may go undetected and pass out of the body painlessly during urination. The most common symptom of kidney stones is pain which begins as a vague sensation then becomes sharp and severe as ureter muscles contract and relax around the stones. Initially, the pain is felt on the flanks or on the sides of the body, between the pelvis and ribs, including the lower back and upper abdomen. Later it moves to the groin or testicles as the kidney stone moves through the urinary tract.

Generally, the symptoms of kidney stones follow the migration of the stone across the urinary tract. The symptoms will depend on whether the stone gets stuck in the kidney, begins to travel down the ureter, or causes an infection.

Therefore, depending on the size of the stone, symptoms may include:

  • Sharp, persistent and severe ache in the side and back, often below the ribs
  • Pain which spreads to the groin and lower abdomen
  • Pain occurring in waves and with fluctuating intensity
  • Pain when passing urine
  • Restlessness and inability to lie still
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Red, pink or brown urine
  • Foul smelling or cloudy urine
  • Urge to pass urine more often than usual
  • Urinating small quantities of urine
  • Chills and fevers if there is an infection

Blood in urine, often caused by the stone scratching the ureter or kidney
A kidney stone may cause an infection when it has blocked the ureter, preventing waste products from passing the blockage and resulting in bacterial build-up. It is the infection that causes symptoms such as fever, chills and shivering, diarrhea, foul smelling and cloudy urine, and fatigue.

Symptoms of Kidney Stone and Treatment OptionsIf you have these symptoms, it is important to see a physician, preferably a urologist. The doctor will perform a medical and symptomatic history, give a physical exam and order the necessary tests to confirm the presence of kidney stones and determine their size, location and appropriate treatment. The tests may include blood tests (like uric acid, calcium and phosphorous), tests for stone-forming salt crystals, infections, blood cells and stone factors, kidney function tests, and imaging tests (kidney ultrasounds, CT scans, MRI scans, abdominal X-rays and intravenous pyelograms). The urologist will recommend appropriate treatment after confirming the presence of stones.

If small, less-troublesome stones are detected, the urologist may recommend drinking 8-16 cups of water to flush them out. Along with the recommendation to drink plenty of fluid, the urologist may prescribe pain relievers such as ibuprofen, naproxen sodium or acetaminophen. In some cases, the urologist may offer a medication to help pass small stones from the kidney. The medication, called an alpha blocker, helps to relax ureter muscles and allows the stones to move quickly and painlessly out of the urinary tract.

Large stones are accompanied by various symptoms and should be treated using stronger measures. The urologist may use sound waves to break up the stones, a procedure called extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL). In some cases, the urologist will use a scope (a thin lighted tube equipped with a camera) to remove the stones. The urologist may also opt for percutaneous nephrolithotomy to surgically remove large stones, or even parathyroid gland surgery when necessary.

At St Pete Urology, we have experienced urologists and state-of-the-art facilities to ensure prompt diagnosis and effective treatment of kidney stones. If you have questions about this condition, visit St Pete Urology in St Petersburg for quality medical care.

What happens during a vasectomy procedure and how does it work?

Vasectomy is considered a permanent birth control method because it prevents the release of sperm during ejaculation. During a vasectomy, the tube (vas deferens) from each testicle is carefully clamped, sealed or cut to prevent the mixing of sperm with ejaculated semen. The testicles will continue to produce sperm but the female egg cannot be fertilized without sperm in the semen. Since the tubes are sealed off before the seminal vesicles and prostate, a man will still ejaculate the same amount of fluid.

So what happens during a vasectomy?

  • (a) The testicles and scrotum are first cleaned with antiseptic and may be shaved.
  • (b) You may be given an intravenous (IV) or oral medicine to minimize anxiety and make you sleepy. If given the medicine, you may not remember much of what happens during the procedure.
  • (c) The urologist will locate each vas deferens by touch and then inject a local anesthetic into the area.
  • (d) The doctor will make 1 or 2 small openings on the scrotum. Then through an opening, the 2 vas deferens tubes are cut, tied and stitched, or sealed. Scar tissue from the operation will help block the tubes.
  • (e) The urologist will then replace the vas deferens inside the scrotum and close the skin with stitches that dissolve on their own. A vasectomy procedure takes 10-30 minutes and can be done in a clinic or office of a urologist, general surgeon or family medicine doctor.

How does vasectomy work?

The scrotum will be numb for 1 to 2 hours after the surgery. You are expected to apply cold packs to the area and get as much rest as possible while lying on your back. Wearing a jockstrap or snug underwear will protect the area and ease the discomfort. You may experience minor pain and swelling for a few days, but rarely anything more serious. After two days you can resume light work, but must wait for at least a week for heavy lifting and strenuous work.

While you can resume sexual intercourse as soon as you feel comfortable, waiting for a week is advisable. Remember, your sperm count will not be zero and you can still get your partner pregnant, so use an alternative birth control method such as condoms until follow-up sperm count tests show no sperm in the semen, usually two months after the procedure.

Vasectomies are 99.85% effective, with only 1 or 2 women in 1000 getting pregnant after their partners have undergone the procedure. It will not interfere with your sex drive, sensation of orgasm, ability to ejaculate or ability to have erections. However, it is a permanent birth control method that must only be considered by those who do not want to have children in the future. For more information on vasectomies, visit St Pete Urology in St Petersburg, Florida.

Women’s Health: Do Women See A Urologist?

It is a common mistake to believe that only men see urologists. In fact, women are more likely than men to have a urinary problem at some stage of life. When it comes to a condition affecting the urinary tract, bladder or kidneys, a urologist is the expert who can offer the best treatment. Urologists see women, men and children to treat common disorders of the urinary system.

Women’s Urological Conditions

(a) Overactive bladder: A woman with an overactive bladder experiences a sudden, frequent or hard-to-control urge to urinate, wakes up more than once at night to urinate, or urinates eight or more times in 24 hours. A urologist will perform various tests to diagnose the disorder and then recommend treatment according to the cause.

(b) Urinary incontinence: Characterized by a loss of bladder control that often results in accidental leakage of urine, urinary incontinence affects up to 57% of women between 40-60 years and requires the attention of a urologist.

(c) Urinary tract infections (UTIs): Urinary tract infections can cause serious complications if they spread to the kidney. They require prompt and effective treatment. Since women are more susceptible than men to UTIs because of their anatomy, they should see a urologist if they have frequent or persistent infections.

(d) Fallen bladder: Because the bladder is held in position by the pelvic floor, it may drop onto the vagina when the pelvic floor is weakened or stretched due to obesity, menopause, aging or prior pelvic surgery. A woman should see a urologist with experience in female urology to correct a fallen bladder.

(e) Painful bladder syndrome (interstitial cystitis): Interstitial cystitis (IC) comes with lower belly and bladder discomfort, a feeling that the bladder is always full, and a sudden and severe urge to urinate (even up to 60 times per day), which can interfere with everyday activities. Some women have been forced to skip social events or avoid travelling away from home, while some find sex uncomfortable or painful due to the condition. Women who have the disorder need to see a urologist.

(f) Urinary stones: Urinary stones are hard masses that form in the kidneys, bladder or ureters. While drinking 2-4 quarts of water in 24 hours may help to move a urinary stone, a urologist can break them apart with ultrasound-based treatment or remove them surgically.

(g) Cancer: Women can have cancer in the bladder, bladder lining, kidneys or urethra. The cancer may show signs such as pain during urination, lower back pain, blood in urine and frequent visits to the bathroom. Seeing a urologist may help to detect and treat the cancer early.

Ideally, women should see a urologist when experiencing:

  • Pelvic pain
  • Burning sensation or discomfort when urinating.
  • Frequent urination
  • Blood in urine
  • Pain in the back or sides
  • Leaking urine

At St Pete Urology, we have specialized urology services that cater to the unique needs of women. We deal with many urological conditions affecting women, including incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, bladder infection, overactive bladder, kidney stones and cancer. Male or female, feel free to contact St Pete Urology when you have a urine or bladder issue.

Debunking 4 Myths about Urinary Incontinence

Urinary incontinence is an embarrassing condition affecting more than 200 million people globally. Characterized by bladder leakage, painful urination, strong urge to urinate and incomplete emptying of the bladder, the condition can negatively impact the quality of life of affected individuals by restricting their ability to participate in various activities. Riddled with several misconceptions and accompanied by considerable stigma, bladder leakage is a highly misunderstood condition that even those affected do not want to talk about. Yet by debunking some of the myths associated with the condition and establishing a clearer understanding of the problem, affected individuals can get on the right track for healthy and happy bladder management. Here are four of the more common myths about urinary incontinence:

Myth 1: Only the elderly experience urinary incontinence.

Even though the risk of urinary incontinence increases with age, virtually any person can experience incontinence at any stage of life. For instance, bladder weakness typically affects 1 in every 3 women above the age of 18 with many young women experiencing sensitive bladder symptoms after pregnancy and labor. Urinary incontinence can also result from an enlarged prostate, nerve damage, weakened pelvic muscles, medical conditions such as obesity, onset of menopause in women due to a drop in estrogen levels, infection, and as a side effect of certain medications.

Myth 2: Reducing fluid intake reduces urinary incontinence.

Limiting fluid intake may sound like a brilliant idea since drinking plenty of water increases the frequency and urgency of urination. However, it has been shown that drinking adequate amounts of fluid in small doses throughout the day helps to prevent leakage. In fact, severe limitation of fluid intake can make urine more concentrated, increasing the risk of bladder irritation and worsening urinary incontinence. Drinking enough water also helps to reduce odors. Doctors recommend that you sip water between meals, avoid fluids for two hours before bed, and reduce or avoid citrus juices, caffeine, carbonated beverages and alcohol.

Myth 3: Surgery is a necessary treatment for urinary incontinence.

While surgery is one effective treatment for incontinence, it comes with more risks than other treatment options. For instance, invasive surgical procedures such as sling surgery and retropubic suspension have associated risks such as difficulty urinating and worsened incontinence. Therefore, affected individuals should always be offered the option of trying nonsurgical treatment first and only opt for surgery when nonsurgical options fail. In fact, for most people, simple lifestyle changes, medications for relaxing the bladder and treating urinary infections, medical devices like pessaries, weight loss, dietary changes, and pelvic floor muscle exercises provide considerable improvement in symptoms. Surgery should only be considered as a last resort.

Myth 4: Delaying urination strengthens the pelvic floor.

While many think that delaying going to the bathroom can help to strengthen the pelvic floor, the truth is that this can overstretch the bladder, resulting in a flaccid and dysfunctional bladder. Therefore, for a person living with urinary incontinence, it is important to avoid actions that may weaken your bladder and instead seek immediate medical treatment. Remember, urinary incontinence may be a symptom of an underlying medical condition that requires a prompt visit to a urologist. So stop living quietly with urinary incontinence and thinking that you can crudely wish it away. Talk to your doctor about what could be causing the problem and what might be the best individual treatment option for you. For more information on managing urinary incontinence, visit the St Pete Urology website or make an appointment for a consultation with a urologist.

Technological Innovations in Urology

Technological innovations in urology have resulted in far-reaching improvements in patient care. At St Pete Urology, the implementation of new technologies and innovations has improved diagnostic accuracy, enhanced the safety and quality of treatments, and streamlined patient information systems. For example, the use of advanced imaging technologies has enabled urologists to visualize and diagnose different conditions more precisely while minimally invasive surgery results in significantly reduced pain and quicker recovery and convalescence.

Laparoscopic Surgery

Our urology specialists use laparoscopic surgery when applying miniature instruments inserted using a small tube (known as a laparoscope) through small incisions in the patient’s body. We use novel biological sensors, techniques and instruments to ensure less pain, faster recovery and better outcomes for urologic problems. For example, we offer minimally invasive laparoscopic surgery for kidney stones, pelvic organ prolapse, live donor nephrectomy, uretal stricture, uretopelvic junction obstruction, renal cysts, renal cell carcinoma, prostate cancer and more. Our urologists in St Petersburg have also refined laparoscopic surgery for use in children to remove dysfunctional or malformed kidneys, correct blocked ureters and treat undescended testicles.

Robotic Surgery

At St Pete Urology, every urologist is trained in the use of robotic surgery to perform operations with more precision. Robot-assisted surgery is a minimally-invasive operation similar to laparoscopy (performed through smaller incisions than open surgery), but in which small surgical tools are mounted on a robotic arm controlled by the surgeon using a computer. The urologist makes tiny incisions for inserting the instruments into the body then uses an endoscope to view enlarged 3-D images of the affected area during the operation. Our urology clinic boasts of the da Vinci machine, the world’s most advanced surgical robot, enabling our specialists to conduct operations with better vision, precision and control.

External Beam Radiation Therapy (EBRT)

Also called Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT), this form of treatment has been implemented at St Pete Urology with great success for prostate patients. Our state-of-the-art imaging enables urologists to direct radiation with more precision to the area of the prostate that requires treatment. With better preparation and planning, this technology ensures more accuracy and allows the urologist to target the same area of the prostate for all additional treatments. In fact, EBRT ensures less radiation and pinpoint accuracy for better outcomes and reduced side effects associated with radiotherapy.

Cryosurgery and Cryosurgical Ablation

We have implemented new cryosurgical technologies for treating prostate cancer, making it easier for our urologists to map cancerous cells more precisely, and freezing and killing cells not reachable by means of radical prostatectomy surgery. Similarly, we use cryosurgical ablation to destroy diseased tissues and eradicate prostate cancer in patients who decline radical surgery (involving prostate removal). Our cryosurgical procedures can be performed on an outpatient basis and without incisions, ensuring minimal blood loss or side effects.

Selecting the Best Technologies

In a world with seemingly endless urology innovations and technologies, we have carefully selected and implemented only those that are effective and appeal to both patients and doctors. This means that all technologies at St Pete Urology have a proven efficacy, cause the least discomfort to patients, and can easily be performed by every urologist. For more information on safer and effective use of the latest technological innovations in the treatment of urological conditions, make an appointment at St Pete Urology in St Petersburg, Florida.

3 Essential Facts About Surgery For Prostate Cancer

When prostate cancer is detected early enough, before it has spread beyond the prostate gland, surgery is often recommended as the cure. Also known as prostatectomy, surgery for prostate cancer involves removal of the entire prostate and nearby lymph nodes. The surgery not only aims to remove the cancer but also to provide a close look at the pathology of the cancer. It ensures that treatment is completed within a shorter period of time compared to other options such as radiotherapy. Surgery also has immediate psychological benefits in patients who take comfort in knowing that the cancer has been removed.

3 Essential Facts About Prostate Cancer Surgery

1. There are two basic approaches: Open and Laparoscopic.

To remove the cancer, the urologist gains access to the prostate and associated lymph nodes either by open radical prostatectomy or laparoscopic prostatectomy (either manually or robot-assisted). Open radical surgery for prostate cancer is the procedure whereby an incision, roughly 10 centimeters in length, is made in the patient’s lower abdomen (belly button to pubic bone) or in the skin between anus and scrotum (perineum) in order to access the prostate and affected lymph nodes. In laparoscopic surgery the urologist may use either a small camera and instruments (laparoscope) to make several small incisions or perform the surgery with robotic equipment that provides 3-D vision and dexterity.

2. Robot-assisted prostatectomy gives better precision and outcome.

Robotic prostatectomy is performed using a robotic interface (the da Vinci System), with the surgeon sitting at a control panel and moving robotic arms to operate via several minute incisions made in the patient’s abdomen. The da Vinci system ensures less pain, minimal blood loss and shorter recovery time than open surgery. For surgeons, robotic surgery ensures more maneuverability and greater precision in the movement of surgical instruments.

3. The success of the operation depends on the surgeon’s skill and experience.

Like any surgery, prostate surgery is associated with risks regardless of the approach used. Therefore, whether you opt for open or laparoscopic surgery, you must find an experienced and highly skilled urologist capable of conducting operations with minimal risks. The surgeon should be capable of performing operations that ensure that nerves near the prostate are not harmed. Remember, in some cases, the urologist will have to remove small amounts of tissue that contain lymph nodes near your prostate or will remove the prostate gland together with the seminal vesicles and vas deferens. So the more skilled and experienced the surgeon, the higher the chance of success.

For more information on successful surgery for prostate cancer, visit the website of St Pete Urology in St Petersburg, Florida.