Early-Stage Clinical Experiences of Holmium Laser Enucleation of the Prostate (HoLEP) / Journal of Rural Medicine

ABSTRACT

Objective: Recently, holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HoLEP) has been established as one method of endoscopic surgery for the treatment of benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH). The purpose of our study was to assess initial clinical experiences with HoLEP at our hospital.;Patients and Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted of 28 patients with obstructive symptoms due to BPH who underwent HoLEP during the 13 months between February 2004 and March 2005.;Results: The mean age of the patients was 67.4 years (range 59 to 78 years). The mean enucleation tissue weight was 24.3 g (range 2 to 95 g), and the average operation time was 94.1 minutes (range 40 to 268 minutes). The mean duration of postoperative catheterization was 3.4 days (range 1 to 6 days). The mean urine flow rate improved, and each patient's satisfaction for voiding, measured on a 5-point scale, was good. There were no major complications during the operations except one case, which was completed with TUR-P because of uncontrollable bleeding. No patients required transfusions. Long-term complications included five cases of stress incontinence (19%), four of urethral stricture (14%), and three temporary retention, two of which required re-catheterization (10%).;Conclusion: HoLEP can be performed without major intraoperative complications. It is an effective treatment for obstructive symptoms due to BPH. However, there are many postoperative problems that must be resolved, including stress incontinence and urethral stricture because of our lack of experience, with HoLEP.