Hello. my name is Tom and I'm from the US. (Hope that's OK) I'm 77 and 20+ years ago I had a disasterous TURP. A real butcher job. I was hemoraging for 20+ days, I was completely incontenente for 4-5 months, retrograde ejack, etc.
On top of all this I could tell the doctor wanted dump me as a patient as fast as he could. In spite of all this I finally regained control and recovered. (NO THANKS to the SOB that operated on me.)
Fast forward to 2016. I saw symptoms returning over last few years and were held at bay by Flomax and Avodart. But this year meds started to fail and a few weeks ago I went into complete retention so for 2 weeks I was married to a foley catheter. Yesterday, Thursday April 7, I had the green light laser treratment. It was an out patient procedure. I left for home around 2:00 PM with a cath that's going to be removed this coming Monday.
When I came home yesterday my prostate area was in god awful pain. I took ONLY ONE of the pain pills prescribed for me. I could see by the color of the urine in the bag(s) that I was bleeding. (Which was to be expected)
Here's the strange part: Around 10:30 PM last night I realized that ALL pain and discomfort were completely gone and this morning, April 8, the urine is just a light yellow with NO TRACE of blood!
IT IS AS IF NOTHING EVER HAPPENED YESTERDAY! Have any of you ever heard of this (seemingly) rapid recovery?
I'm a little concerned about what will happen Monday when the cath is removed. The surgeon says I'll need pelvic training/rehab due to the damage to sphincters caused by first op. I got them to work the first time with sheer determination. I hope I don't have to go down that road again.
Are any of you are familiar with this speedy recovery situation? I'd love to hear about your experiences/suggestions.
Thank you.
Wow and sorry to read of your experiences! As for the quick change, failing other explanations, I would just go with "modern miracle" and not think too hard about it! :-)
Re cath removal: I hated that experience, and would only suggest a little levity, to get the nurse (or whomever) to pay close attention to what s/he's doing. My line: HEY! I recognize you; it was a past-life experience and you were on the staff of the Spanish Inquisition. I hope you have learned to be a little more gentle in the past several incarnations." Sometimes helps. It worked for me on a crusty old Serbian nurse many months back... Humor AND the gentle reminder that there is AN ACTUAL HUMAN BEING on the other end of the cath has helped in my experiences... :-)
Also: there is some work you can do on your own, via whifty-nifty "getting in touch with your body" work... to reconnect with those sphincter muscles...
Wow, I am sorry to hear that you had such a bad experience with TURP. It usually comes down to the experience of the doctor. I had a kidney stone removed as a young man and the doctor was equally as young so it didn't go as well as I hoped. I still dribble after urination as a result and my body rejected the stint that was in. I can tell you when they removed it , it was a terrible experience and knowing what I know now I would have insisted on a woman assistant to help remove it. Oh well, hind sight is always 20/20 . I would make sure that they are careful and not rushed. It should be ok. I would say that you are lucky that you are healing quickly. Sounds like you will be better off this time.
Tom,
You have gone through a lot, but at least it appears you are on the mind now. Good news!
TURP is a cutting procedure and so there is going to be blood after. Don't know what happened to you 20 years ago, but urologists who perform this may be better at it now than 20 years ago. A larger blood vessel or artery may have been severed back then. But, cutting = blood and a longer recovery time.
Greenlight is a laser vaporization of tissue procedure, and as such the blood vessles are cauterized, so much less blood. The description of your rapid recovery is not surprising. A very positive outcome.
If your prostate continues to grow, at some point in the future you may need another treatment - 5 to 10 years in the future. Many here on this forum have had excellent results with PAE and Urolift - they get the most relief with fewest side effects.
Hope it is smooth sailing for you from now on.
My best...Tom
Tom I am so sorry for what happen to you so many years ago. You were only 57 and that was early. I had a scare at 47 but I would have never had that done if they offered it to me. I only had a infection but ended up have kidney stones. Why did you had a green light done. Did they offer you any thing else. Sorry about the retenion. Had that about a moth ago Had 3 blood clogs around my prostate 1 broke and had to have surgery to fix the others. Muscle spams hurt like hell. I am glad that you are doing good. You may have had it easier because there was not to much left in the inside of the prostate. Having the turp they core out most of it. That is why you bleed so much. I hope you contiinue to get better Ken
Yea, PAE would be my first choice. It is gaining acceptance in the USA and maybe a covered viable option in the near future. It maybe covered by insurance now, not sure. If not it will be soon.
I think that we should start puting the turp and the laser away for while because they are so painful for a man to go through. Coring and lasering out the prostate is very painful and damageing to a mans body. some men can take it but sometime it takes 6 month's to a year to heal. No man want that. The new procedures are much better and the side effects are iess. Just get information on whatever to decide. Your the one that has to deal with the out come not the doctor. Ken
It looks like my fears concerning incontinence were unfounded. It's the exact oppisite. I was operated on Thursday, April 7 and catheter was removed on the 11th.
The cath was removed at 10:30 AM in doctor's office. I was successful in voiding the little bit that was in me. I was told to go home, eat and drink and urinate at home if I had the call. ( I did but was less than thrilled with the stream.)
I was instructed to come back to the office, empty my bladder to the best of my ability, and then they performed an ultrasond and told me there was very little urine in my bladder. I was released with an appointment for follow up with urologist in 3 weeks.
At NO TIME was "stream" anything to write home about and in all cases I had to bear doen to assist stream.
It's now 12:30 on Tuesday AM and I can't say I can go at all but I really don't feel that full. (Yet)
I'm kind of worried and scared. Anyone else ever in this situation?
Tom
Tom,
You may have tissue swelling - not surprising after the procedure that you just went through. This should reduce over time. You would gain a lot of information by measuring your urine output - your Urologist can give you a plastic measuring beaker. That way you can monitor the flow - keep a record. As the tissues "settle down" you should notice an increase in the amount or urine you can pass at one time.
If you believe the swelling is such that you can't pass anything, you have to go in for a catheter until the situation resolves. I went through this exact thing after radiation to my prostate a couple of years ago.
When I was in my measuring stage I was outputting about 1300ml per 24 hours, and about half of that at night. As long as you are able to empty your bladder - even slowly - you will be ok.
Tom
Hi Tom,
I most sincerely hope that Tom86211 is completely accurate in his view that you have been dealt with this time by an expert, who has successfully cauterised everything, and that your healing will be uneventful.
Just remember, somewhere around 2 weeks in, there may be scabs peeling off, and some bleeding may follow. Provided you are not taking any form of blood thinning meds (e.g. warfarin, aspirin), that should clear in hours. Drink water to flush out.
All we men on this site are anxious to follow your recovery, as we are here to learn, to support, and to advise where possible. So please keep us up-to-date.
Hi Tom,
If your fluid intake is normal and you aren't voiding then this is serious you have to see your doctor right away because either you are retaining urine or have some other issue that needs addressing.
As suggested start measuring your urine output in a plastic beaker calibrated in ounces and/ or cc's or ml's. You can pick up one in any grocery store. Either urinate into that or into a larger container and then use the beaker to measure it. Do a written log with date, time and amount voided. Also log your fluid intake in the same way.
But again, if you haven't urinated for some time, or very little is coming out, call your dictor right away. A weak stream os OK at this point but the lack of normal urine volume has to be checked right away.
Jim
Hi, just to add my 10 penneth!!...exactly 12 months ogo i had the standard TURP op. I am 67 and very fit!! My op was largely to clear a blockage at the neck of the Urethra and not expressly to "bore out" the prostate! however as the only real way in was up the prostste, the rebore happened anyway! the op went well, rec overy good out next day no cath`s or anything..some bleeding and discomfort for 10 days or so! BUT..more often than not even though urine stream was ok and bladder was emptying..a STRANGE feelng would sometimes accompany me foir several hours thereafter!! this went on until and up to a month or so ago!! now gone and all seems "normal!!" my consultant informs me that a lot of the feelings associated are "in your head?" because a very strategic and important body function is being messed with!!! So it would appear that we are all very different in our ways of dealing with this "thing" and the recovery also varies greatly and from day to day( ups and downs!!) and goes on for a lot longer than we may find comfortable! even if it does not affect our daily lives dramatically! i nbow have to say although my procedeure went (fairly) well and straightforward, i would recommend some serious thinking before going , or, recommending the TURP op to anyone else!! good luck matey! you will recover ok in time!! Syd
You are lucky. My Green Light 4 years ago was as bad as your TURP. It took me almost a year to recover. About a year ago I was in an auto accident and retention returned for 8 months. Then I started urinating again at about 75 percent of normal and it has remained that way.
Yes, re measuring the output as JimJames suggests. An additional thought: You can also do a rough measuring of the flow, about which you are concerned. Acceptable flow rate is about 10cc/ml per second, or 100cc/ml in ten seconds. Using a watch or clock, pee til you're finished, check the total time, and divide into the amount of urine. E.g., 300ml divided by 30 seconds= acceptable flow rate of 10cc/second. I've gotten so used to that, that on my flow-rate check-up, 4 months post-Urolift surgery, I gave them the correct rate before having the test that confirmed it!
Syd Did they say there was any other way they could have repaired it without coreing out the prostate. I think no men should go through that. The turp procedure is very damageing to a mans body. And what you were feeling was something real. How can they say it all in your head Did they have it done. No. Doctor try to down play the procedures side effects so you will have it done. With all the new procedure out there now I think it time to put that one on the side. It been a year now and I am glad you are doing well But what if it did not work. You went through something you did not have to have done and they would most likely try to talk you into doing it again. Life is to short to have to deal with problems that we don't have to... Take care,,Ken
Lester that that mean that you would never have it done again. Ken
Ken,
When retention recurred they wanted me to undergo TURP. I opted for a case of 360 intermittent catheters, Fortunately I have not had to use a single one.
I feel your pain. Went into retention a month ago. It was caused by my blood thinner. Had 3 blood clogs around by prostate one broke. Was in the hospital for 3 days had a 24 hour flush after surgery to burn them. . 6000CC of saline going through my bladder ever 2 hours. The bladder spasms were the pits. Take care Ken
Hi Ken...yes....well...i was in a panic at the time!!!! UTI...all the classic bph signs...so when told " no prostate enlargement ..but!!!..we need to do this and that.. i went with it, The surgeon was very understanding, and very competant as it turns out.. i mentioned Green light ..PAE..Urolift...etc, but he said..ahhh well you do not have BPH or associated probs (prostatitus) you have ..blah blah...and as a ex pro cyclist you will recover fine!! and sure enough i did not have bph or prostate probs!! but i got the TURP!! ok, so now i pee wonderfully well, and the sex life is fine(except RE!!) But i now know that a invasive op through the groinal area( more seerious and longer convales) would have done the same job...without the side effects of a TURP!! and the lasting "feelings" i suppose as a 68 yr old its all a matter of opinion, but as a 50 yr old in the same position.....hmnnn!! anyway thanks for joining in, regards to all Syd.