NEW ORLEANS, LA USA (UroToday.com) - Holmium laser enucleation of the prostate is an effective therapy for BPH at 100-120 watts; however, the use of holmium laser at 50 watts for enucleation of the prostate has not been previously performed. Therefore, the authors sought to show the feasibility of using this lower energy and lower cost approach for prostate enucleation.
The authors performed enucleation of the prostate at 50 Watts in 105 patients and observed marked improvements in all patient flow and symptom parameters consistent with results from 100-120 Watt holmium laser surgery. In fact, all patients became catheter free after surgery. Of note, the authors also found that length of hospital stay was significantly reduced in the 50 W patients compared to 100-120 W patients (1.03 days vs 2.70 days, respectively). Finally, in their presentation, the authors demonstrated the effectiveness of their technique by showing surgical video footage of a successful enucleation using the 50-watt holmium laser.
By performing this study, the authors successfully showed the viability of using the holmium laser at lower watt levels for enucleation of the prostate, supporting the notion that surgeon technique is a more important factor than laser power for a successful enucleation surgery. Their findings may be important in developing lower energy holmium laser services at hospitals at a much more economical costs for patients.
Presented by Farooq Khan at the American Urological Association (AUA) Annual Meeting - May 15 - 19, 2015 - New Orleans, LA USA
Luton, United Kingdom
Reported by Kyle Spradling (University of California-Irvine), medical writer for UroToday.com