Q: My 74 years old grandfather has benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Which type of surgical treatment would be suitable for him - laser or with stitches or any other? Currently he is taking Urimax F daily and Anafortan N only when the pain starts. The ultrasonography of the abdomen has revealed massive prostatic enlargement with large intravesical median lobe, prostate measurement - 6.5 x 5.3 x 5.6 cm, prostate weight - 104 gm, cystitis with large residue (full bladder - 332 cc, post void - 82 cc). Please advise.

A:Success of the procedure would depend upon which procedure your urologist is more familiar with. Certainly, it should be done through urethra. Recently published results do show that lasers are better for less bleeding than conventional transurethral resection but are very expensive. However, Conventional transurethral surgery gives excellent results in the hands of experienced urologists. Open surgery is needed in extremely small number of cases.