What is Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia?
PRESQUE ISLE, Maine (WAGM) -Continuing on the topic of mens health, today we learn about a condition that can affect men as they get older. Megan Cole explains in this Medical Monday. As men age a common problem they experience is feeling that their bladder isnt empty. Its actually a benign versus a malignant or cancerous growth. It occurs in just about all men but men who are in their 50s, 50% of men will have it. With each decade, you know men, 60% of men in their 60s, 70% of men in their 70s and so on and so forth.  Health experts say there are symptoms to watch out for. Difficulty with urination. Specifically, urinary hesitancy or you feel like you need to empty your bladder and have a hard time getting it started. Feeling sometimes or maybe all the time that you dont empty all the way and you have to go back in 5 or ten minutes and go again and maybe even go a third time before you really feel that you emptied or sometimes feel you never really do empty really well. Getting up at night to go to the bathroom is also another symptom.  He adds there are medications and procedures to treat BPH, but some procedures can be invasive. But, he says there is a treatment called REZUM that has been shown to help. What it involves is actually infusing steam the prostate, sort of into the meat of the prostate if you will and the steam insinuates its way through the prostate tissues and because steam being steam, its heat it actually kills the target cells or the target tissue. This procedure now has been around for over 5 years and the retreatment rate is about 5% so about 1% of people who receive this treatment per year require a retreatment so 99% of people dont.  If youre concerned you may have BPH, youre encouraged to contact your primary care provider. Copyright 2021 WAGM. All rights reserved.