There is no sure way to prevent BPH. Still, losing weight and eating a well-balanced diet, rich in fruits and vegetables, may help. Too much body fat, may increase hormone levels and other factors in the blood, and stimulate the growth of prostate cells. Staying active also helps control weight and hormone levels.
Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia
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Overview
What is Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia
Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is when the prostate and surrounding tissue expands. The prostate goes through two main growth periods as a man ages. The first is early in puberty, when the prostate doubles in size. The second begins around age 25 and continues during most of a man’s life. As you age, your prostate may get larger. BPH is when it gets large enough to cause problems.
Symptoms
When the prostate is enlarged, it can bother or block the bladder. Needing to pass urine often is a common symptom of BPH. This might be every 1 to 2 hours, mainly at night.
Other symptoms include:
- Incomplete emptying: the feeling your bladder is full, even after passing urine.
- Frequency: the need to pass urine often, about every one to two hours.
- Intermittency: the need to stop and start several times when passing urine.
Causes
The causes of BPH are not clear. It mainly occurs in older men. Hormone changes are thought to play a role.
Hormones from the testis may be the main factor. For example, as men age, the amount of active testosterone in the blood declines. Estrogen levels stay the same.
BPH may occur when these hormone changes trigger prostate cell growth. Another theory is about the role of dihydrotestosterone (DHT). This male hormone supports prostate development. Some studies show that older men have higher levels of DHT. Testosterone levels go down.
Diagnosis
See your doctor if you have symptoms that might be BPH. See your doctor right away if you have blood in your urine, pain or burning when you urinate, or if you cannot urinate.
There are many tests for BPH. The following tests are used to diagnose and track BPH.
Treatment
Surgery is not always necessary and some patients may just need regular monitoring of the condition. Medication may be used to relax the muscle tissue around the bladder, depending on the individual patient. Most people will notice an improvement within days.
Transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP): Patients are discharged from hospital 48 hours following TURP and should avoid heavy physical exercise for 2 weeks. Urinary flow is usually markedly improved immediately but frequency may take 6-12 weeks to completely settle.
Transurethral resection in saline (TURis): TURis is an electrosurgery system used at London Urology for use in TURP for BPH patients. Although the procedure remains the same as the traditional method for TURP, TURis involves utilising saline solution instead of glycerine to deliver the electricity.
