ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Animal and clinical experiments have recently shown that TUEIP resulted in a reduction of the prostate volume and an increase of the lumen of the prostatic urethra. We assessed the clinical efficacy of TUEIP for BPH. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between February 2001 and December 2001, 27 patients diagnosed with BPH, and had undergone surgical management, were evaluated. With endoscopic injection set, 99% alcohol was injected into the inferior portion of the bladder neck and around the verumontanum, depending on the individual endoscopic findings. Pre-operatively, immediately after removal of the Foley catheter and at 3 months post-operatively, all the patients were evaluated with uroflowmetry and PVR, with 15 patients receiving transrectal ultrasound at 3 months post-operatively. RESULTS: The pre-operative Qmax was 8.1ml/sec, which increased to 11.8ml/sec (p<0.05) after removal of the Foley catheter, and was further increased to 13.0ml/sec (p<0.05) at 3 months post-operatively. The pre-operative PVR was 14.2ml, which increased to 15.8ml and 16.5ml after removal of the Foley catheter and at 3 months post- operatively, respectively. The pre-operative prostate volume was 39.7cc, which was reduced to 25.9cc (p<0.05) at 3 months post-operatively. There was no systematic adverse effect from alcohol absorption. CONCLUSIONS: TUEIP is considered as an effective alternative treatment of symptomatic bladder outlet obstruction caused by BPH, showing a significant increase in Qmax and reduction of the prostate volume.