Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (HPB)
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Specialities >> Urology >> What Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia is (BPH)
What Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia is (BPH)
Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) is a disease caused by the enlargement of the size of the prostate. This enlargement is directly related to age, which means that the older the man, the greater the possibility of suffering from Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH).
As the prostate enlarges, the Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia becomes chronic and leads to problems that can lead to more serious medical conditions if not treated correctly.
Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia is more common among men who are older than 45, the age at which the prostate increases its size.
What the prostate is and where it is located
The prostate is a gland the size of a walnut located beneath the bladder and surrounds the urethra in its initial portion. When passing through the anus, due to the action of several factors, within them the most important are the masculine hormones; the prostate suffers an enlargement of up to 80%.
The enlargement can be inwards the light of the urethra (centripetal) or outwards (centrifugal). As the urine must course through the centre of the prostate, it enlarges as age goes by, a problem is set. The function of this gland is to produce part of the volume of the sperms.
Symptoms, examinations and treatments for What Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia is (BPH)
The most common symptoms when the enlargement of the prostate happens are:
Getting up too many times during the night to urinate (nocturia);
Urinate too frequently (polyuria);
Sensation of incomplete vesical emptying;
Weak urinary stream;
Interruption in the urinary stream;
Dribbling on the end of miction;
Decrease in urinary volume;
Blood in the urine (hematuria) .
The symptoms tend to evolve with periods of improvement and worsening. A patient who remains many years with this difficulty without treatment may present some Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) complications, which are:
Bladder deterioration;
Formation of stones inside it (vesical calculus);
Bleeding (hematuria)
Frequent urinary infections and even the loss of the renal function;
The patient who has these symptoms must undergo some examinations to evaluate the necessity of treatment. A medical appointment must be made with an interview, in which the consultant urologist tries to differentiate other factors which may generate similar symptoms.
The physical examination includes measuring arterial pressure, abdominal examination and rectal touch to evaluate volume, format and consistency of the prostate. The lab tests include ultrasound of the urinary ducts, test of urinary sediments, blood test, PSA and also evaluation of urinary pressure (urofluxometry/urodynamic studies). If the results of these tests are conclusive, the urologist will be able to offer some alternatives of treatment:
- Treatment by medication, which may be hormones, phototherapic, and alpha-blockers
- Surgical Treatment: it can be done through a minimally invasive technique like the surgery through the urethral duct (by laser, urethral stent, prostatectomy, electrovaporization which is considered golden standard, the TURP- transurethral resection of the prostate).
Surgery may eventually be necessary through abdominal incision and, although it seems very aggressive, the intra and post-operatory are quite satisfactory, not requiring a long period before the patient can resume normal activities.
Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia is (BPH) and the Cancer
Prostatic Hyperplasia is a benign disease, whilst the prostate cancer is malign. There are no studies which prove that BPH may turn into cancer in the future.
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