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Why it's done
By Mayo Clinic staffInterstitial laser therapy is an inpatient procedure to treat urinary symptoms caused by an enlarged prostate. These symptoms include:
- Frequent need to urinate
- Increased frequency of urination at night (nocturia)
- Stopping and starting again while urinating
- The feeling you can't completely empty your bladder
Interstitial laser therapy works best for men who have a normal sized to moderately enlarged prostate. One of the main advantages of interstitial laser therapy is that it doesn't cause blood loss as is possible with surgery and other enlarged prostate procedures. Because of this, interstitial laser therapy can be a good option for men who take medication to thin their blood or who have a bleeding disorder that doesn't allow their blood to clot (coagulate) normally.
- AUA guideline on the management of benign prostatic hyperplasia: Diagnosis and treatment recommendations. Baltimore, Md.: American Urological Association. http://www.auanet.org/content/guidelines-and-quality-care/clinical-guidelines/main-reports/bph-management/chapt_1_appendix.pdf. Accessed March 12, 2009.
- Fried NM. New laser treatment approaches for benign prostatic hyperplasia. Current Urology Reports. 2007;8:47.
- Fitzpatrick JM, et al. Minimally invasive and endoscopic management of benign prostatic hyperplasia. In: Wein AJ, et al, Campbell-Walsh Urology. 9th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/125743340-3/0/1445/91.html?tocnode=54305416&fromURL=91.html. Accessed March 12, 2009.
- Daehlin L, et al. Interstitial laser coagulation in the management of lower urinary tract symptoms suggestive of bladder outlet obstruction from benign prostatic hyperplasia: Long-term follow-up. BJU International. 2007;100:89.
- Edwards JL. Diagnosis and management of benign prostatic hyperplasia. American Family Physician. 2008;77:1403.
