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Why it's done
By Mayo Clinic staffTransurethral microwave therapy (TUMT) is a treatment to relieve urinary symptoms caused by an enlarged prostate, such as:
- A 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
TUMT works best for men who have a moderately enlarged prostate and moderate symptoms. It doesn't work as well if your prostate is enlarged mainly in the middle lobe, which grows upward and presses into your bladder. In such cases, the microwave antenna may not produce enough energy to reach the part of your prostate blocking urine flow.
In the long term, surgery appears to be more effective than TUMT for relieving urinary symptoms caused by an enlarged prostate. But TUMT has several advantages:
- It doesn't require general or spinal anesthesia.
- It has a lower risk for bleeding than surgery.
- It may be a safer alternative if surgery isn't a good choice for you because of health problems.
Before deciding TUMT is a good choice for you, your doctor will perform a cystoscopy. This procedure is used to see inside your bladder and the tube that carries urine from your bladder through your penis (urethra).
- 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.
- 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.
- d'Ancona FC. Nonablative minimally invasive thermal therapies in the treatment of symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia. Current Opinion in Urology. 2008;18:21.
- Gravas S et al. Transurethral microwave thermotherapy: From evidence-based medicine to clinical practice. Current Opinion in Urology. 2007;17:12.
- Hoffman RM et al. Microwave thermotherapy for benign prostatic hyperplasia. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2007:CD004135.
- Cunningham GR, et al. Surgical and other invasive therapies of benign prostatic hyperplasia. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed March 12, 2009.
