just wondering if anyone has had this surgery or know anything about it , good or bad , i live in Texas and looking for a urologist that does this
I’ve not had HoLEP but have it scheduled. I hope to avoid it. Am monitoring Stebrunner’s (a poster here) progress with FLA and hope to go that way too. I know that some who have had HoLEP recommend it while others regret having had it. I believe the following is correct: The procedure has been around for roughly 25 years. It is now pitched for large prostates (> 100) only, having mostly lost the smaller prostate market to other and newer methods (e.g., Urolift, Rezum). HoLEP provides reduced bleeding due to the laser’s heat when compared to older procedures (e.g., TURP, open simple prostatectomy) but really not much else. Still has most of the side effects associated with older procedures. The reduced bleeding enables surgeons to see better through the scope and therefore remove more tissue lowering the need for retreatment – an advantage HoLEP surgeon’s also point to. At my age, if I live long enough to need retreatment, I will be pleasantly surprised.
Aside from the usual side effects, my reason for wanting to avoid HoLEP is mainly that I don’t believe the permanent incontinence prevalence that is being described by some of the HoLEP surgeons. I believe there is a gap between the journal articles and the real world in this regard. I’m also concerned by what the market is obviously trying to tell us. Why is so much money being invested in alternatives (e.g., Aquablation), if HoLEP is giving the “excellent results” that journal articles refer to? My guess is that investors know HoLEP results are often not excellent and a huge market for a better procedure exists.