Hello. I've been reading some of your comments on these issues and you seem to have an interest in them and be knowledgeable. I am 59 years old and struggling with enlarged prostate and growing symptoms over the last eight years or so. I asked the urologist when I would have to do something about it and he said "When I have to do something about it." The last time I went he asked me how often I was up at night and I told him five or six times and he said that's too much. I agree. I also have trouble on my long auto trips being able to last very long between stops. I am in generally very good health except for this. Not overweight, exercise a lot. He recommended the Uro lift but when I tried to schedule they told me my insurance Blue Cross/Blue Shield does not cover it and that he could instead do the TURP procedure. I had researched and kind of wrapped my head around the lift and wanted to go in that direction. I am in the Memphis Tennessee area. I will no longer have Blue Cross Blue Shield coverage under the ACA so will have to change to a non-ACA Blue Cross Blue Shield or some other company under the ACA. There is a good chance I will have a very high deductible. I could not really get a price from the urologist office so I could consider self pay But I know the there is a big discount for the insurance companies so I don't know if self pay would even be a realistic option. Any ideas on all of this. My doctor is Dr. Greenberger with memphis urology. thanks for any insight you can provide. Raleigh Sanford.
Do your homework. I had Greenlight lazer just over 3 weeks ago and have had good result so far. Faster recovery and very little bleeding and very little discomfort. My insurance is covering it. I had total retention and 2 emergency hospital stays in 2 months due to infections so had to get something done fast. So far no retro ejaculation . Maybe I am lucky. Dr had done about 1000 of them. Have pretty good bladder control. Better than I expected.
I am 63 years old .
Res! Urolift not covered? Check on this please. Call your insurance rep. As far as I know, it IS covered. If your anatomy "qualifies " for the Urolift, please go for it and NOT the TURP. Plenty of horror stories about TURPS on these threads.
ALternatively... may I STRONGLY suggest that you (1) learn to self-cath (SpeedyCaths are the only ones I use; better than any others I've tried.)... it will buy you time, to consider other options that guys favor here. If you truly are not covered for Urolift.
(2) Self-cath until you are Medicare-qualified! Medicare covers it! I got my Urolift a year ago. It was partially successful, and fully covered by Medicare. Cost me less than $1,000 for my 20%, as I recall... (Price went up recently for those tiny implants, by $400, I'm told.)
Also: If you self-cath before bedtime, it will likely allow you TO SLEEP RIGHT THROUGH THE NIGHT! I do so, and almost NEVER awaken with a need to pee.
Also: understand that urologists are a fairly unimaginative bunch. "TURP is the 'Gold Standard" is the line we have all heard. TURP sucks too often for anyone to have it if they don't have to. Yes, there are a few guys here who have posted success with TURPS, but read the horror stories, and make a decision based on ALL the possible outcomes. For myself, I'd rather cath the rest of my life than take chances with a TURP.
Hi Raleigh,
I was in the same situation as you... good health, getting up 5 or 6 times a night.
About a year ago I started to casually reseach treatments, found this forum and got interested in Urolift.
Gradually I started to have occaisional bad nights where I'd have to get up so often and it would take too long to empty my bladder that the next day I'd be sleep deprived, zombie like, feeling sickly. Thats when I "had to do something"
So I got serous about Urolift and contacted a doctor to discuss it. But then I read a report about a pin coming lose and causing a very painful and dangerous situation as it floated around a mans abdomen. I learned that the prostate continues to grow so its not a surprise that the pins can come lose. At that point, stapling my prostate started to sound like a not-so-good idea.
I switched my interest to PAE which I had on Sept 27. I had no pain, no bleeding, no catheter, only a couple of days of moderate burning when urinating.
I keep a log which shows that for the last week I've been getting up an average of 1.6 times per night. The progress to this point hasn't been a straight line but it seems to be continuing.
My wife says that my real personality has returned now that I'm not sleep deprived.
You can read the details of my experiences under a thread called "My PAE Experience Today".
Thanks for your happy-ending report, jjjj! Yeah, sleep-deprivation really messed me up, too. Before my prostate shut me down completely, August of 2014, I was up 3-4 times a night, no fun. This is why I went to self-cathing (after one horrible week on a cath-n-bag set up, UGH!
I wonder then, why the self-cathing-at-bedtime isn't taught or encouraged more often. Again, maybe uro-docs just aren't creative thinkers. But this up-many-times-a-night problem is what drives guys to buy into spending $$$ on TURPS. What do they say? Follow the money! I'm not saying, but still... But it's the most common complaint that causes guys to buy into TURPS, you know? I am currently in a holding pattern, awaiting a second Urolift. I'm working with my doc, to see if a different approach can solve my reoccurent blockage. But in the meantime, I self-cath a couple of times each day, and before bed.
And did I mention my up-at-night number is near-zero???? :-)
Also private insurance will cover part of the FLA. But not Medicare.
Urologists don't talk self catherization because they don't make money on surgeries if the patients finds it's a good solution for them. Instead, they give patients the line about TURP being the gold standard, scare them with what might happen if they don't have TURP, and like sheep, they rush to surgery. I was one of the sheep, have had two procedures already this year, and will have a third (artificial sphincter) before the end of the year to try to correct for the damage from the 1st and/or second procedure. I have original medicare and BC/BS secondary, and I still expect my out-of-pocket for doctors, theraphists ,medications, incontinence supplies, etc. to be close to $10,000 for 2016.
" He recommended the Uro lift but when I tried to schedule they told me my insurance Blue Cross/Blue Shield does not cover it."
Never mind what 'he' said. What do they say? Urolift is becoming more mainstream all the time. I'm on Medicare so I'm not familiar with the trials and tribulations of the ACA issues. But Urolift is FDA approved, Medicare approved and my supplemental covered the remainder. So some coverage is out there. That deductable stuff with the ACA does sound like a bad deal however. As I'm sure you'll hear from others, be careful and be armed with all the info you can get. Remember TURP side effects are for life and at 59, that's a long time.
Best wishes
Thanks, Glenn, for giving an example of the screw-ups that can results from faulty TURPs. My doc wanted to do TURP, and said,"Only 4-5% of guys have problems." (Since the, what I've seen and learned tells me the number is way higher!). I replied to his assertion, "Yeah, but would YOU want to be one of those 4-5%?" I learned to cath right after that, and started reading/learning. I can pee some, must cath some, my love-life apparatus works as it should (and I'm 67) and I never have experienced incontinence. I feel very fortunate, even if I am in a "holding pattern"...
Not an insurance expert here by any means, but first off I'd say you should try to get assistance from the Dr.'s office on evaluating insurance options available. I found a very significant difference in hearing aids, for instance. By postponing the purchase 2 months for the change of carrier, I saved a cool $1000, so the coverage details really can matter. And under the ACA at least there's no "pre-existing conditions" nonsense.
If you've found a doctor who recommends urolift, then the state insurance regulators really shouldn't be far behind. Check with Blue Cross also, see if they're going to change their policy on it. TURP is invasive and likely to have complications, urolift is by comparison much less likely to go wrong or get horribly expensive.
My experience with urolift has been among the more positive, even though the flow is slowing down after 6 months. The urologist recommended evaluating any more slowdowns with a visit to evaluate flow, as I notice changes, every 3-6 months. That procedure is quite simple, just peeing into a jar on a scale that's also timed, so they can track how long it takes to empty the bladder, and then measure any residue. I still am able to void completely. Best wishes.
...and you can self-time/measure your flow rate, by cathing (or peeing) into a measuring cup or similarly marked container, check your watch, see how much you pee/cath, divide amount by time. E.g., 600cc divided by 60 seconds= 100 cc/10 secs, a good flow.
Also, I am having the same experience as you, that flow slowed after a few months. I will have a second Urolift, about a year after the first. Medicare covers it. Yes, less invasive, and unlike ALL the other options, it's reversible, if you decide on another choice later... :-)
Hi,
I am 68 and having issues like you. But only (only is not the best word) am up 2 to 3 times a night. And the car trips I can relate to you exactly. If I get 2 hours I am lucky. Rarely more. You are having a much tougher time. Am in same phyiscal condition as you. Can't comment on insurance issue you are having as my insurance paid. I am sure it is a very expensive proceedure especially if you go with a general anesthetic. There are other proceedures that I don't have the names in front of me that sound better.
Regards,
L.
I feel so sorry for those of you who do not have a State Health System such as we have in the UK. Our NHS has many faults, but I can barely imagine how stressful it must be to have to find the full cost to pay for what you want. We often have to wait for our treatment here, but I prefer that than to be subject to Insurance Companies' whims. I wish you well and hope you get what you need one way or the other.
I am in UK. I went privately as the NHS don,t offer the HoLep treatment. My prostate was very large at 135, so the consultant recommended the Holep as the best option. I,m glad I took it as my flow is now good. I am still struggling with post op infections but apart from that all is going well.
Can't comment on the insurance, but as regards what procedure or surgery to consider, I would reccommend researching PAE as a possible choice. There are several discussions about PAE in this forum.
Hi! You are young enough to have green light or PAE or TURP with reasonably good results, but pay a lot of attention to the choice of the urologist. He should be able to predict (honestly!!!) the post operatory problems. I don't have ant statistics, but it seems to me that quite often men operated after their 70th birthday (I am 76, operated this year) have the same urge plus urinary incontinence after TURP. This is my case. It concerns probably mostly men over 70 and/or who had real problems (urine retention for instance) before the operation. Also, discuss retrograde ejaculation with your doctor. It happens quite often. Good luck!
PAE would be done by an interventional radiologist, not a urologist. That may be one reason why a urologist might not mention or recommend it.
I agree with everyone who suggested that you look into the insurance thing more carefully. Also consider asking Blue Cross for an exception to be made. They would probably cover TURP, which is a much more expensive surgery with a lot more follow up and possible complications. If your doc lays out the numbers for them, because urolift (Rezum too) is FDA approved, they might agree to it.
If you change carriers, in all liklihood your new carrier will cover it - also ask Blue Cross if they're on their way to doing so (probably are). If so, you might get it covered in a few months.
hey pal forget aboutthe turp you dont want it the urolift is e wao go talk to your md an tell him you will pay cashif he is any type of gd human being he will wk with you