Aquablation: Post-surgery expectations

I wasn't retaining any volume prior to being completely shut down...and I'm not retaining any volume now. I get up once per night...the same as for the past 30 years.

One other thing...the surgeon matters...a lot! Doctor Myers at Middlesex Hospital in Middletown CT has done well over 100 aquablations. He operates two days per month...4 aquablations per day. It may not be as tricky as Holep, but you still want the best, most experienced surgeon you can find!

@connect4321
An update...Surgery 10/15 mid day 3.5 hrs.
No blood or clots leaving hospital. Nurses were amazed. Dr said procedure went perfectly.
Walked 3/4 mile Thursday morning, slight discoloration of urine.
Constipated Thursday, 2 tablets of Ducolax relieved that problem in the early hours of Friday morning.
Walked 3 miles Friday morning

@connect4321
As of this morning, I am not experiencing any blood or clots.
Catheter comes out Monday morning.
Dr said prostate was medium size, but I do not know the size or weight.
Dr indicated Aqua removes 40% of tissue, Turp removes 20% of tissue.
I am to stay on Tamsulosin & finasteride until I am satisfied w/ my flow. Not sure what this means. I would like to get off both ASAP.

@techee
Very glad your procedure went so well! Im two days away from three weeks post procedure. My recovery has been a little slower than yours but am now back to fairly long walks and regular activities. Im very satisfied so far and looking forward to continued improvement. Hoping my post void retention improves as it’s still fairly significant but it’s not due to blockage as I have great flow. I think my bladder needs to adjust to the new landscape down there. I guess that can take some time. .

@icorus1959
I think you are absolutely right. Accurate planning and assessing each prostate requires a good measure of experience Im sure. As does the “cleanup” of fluffy after the water jet and sealing off bleeding using the bipolar electric loop.

@techee not to rain on your parade, but I had a similar aquablation experience and my urine was surprisingly clear the first week. The second week I saw more color in my urine and passed more material. It's a sign of healing, those scabs have to go somewhere. I found more activity meant more color and material passing, but it wasn't a big deal, I was just surprised because I thought i was over the hump, it cleared up in week 3. My only recommendation is stick to doctors orders and don't jump to more physical activity to quickly. I know, the sitting around is maddening.

@techee I am now nine weeks out after aquablation. My urine was mostly clear within a couple of days of having the catheter removed. I felt good and had strong urine flow. I avoided strenuous activity, but started walking several miles a day. Prior to the procedure I was doing a lot of long-distance bicycling. Since I was told not to bike for at least six weeks I thought walking would be a good alternative to help me stay fit. I think I over did the walking. About a week post aquablation my urine went from clear to dark red and sometimes syrupy. I also passed some small blood clots. My urine stayed dark red for almost three weeks, and then gradually cleared up and has been clear since. From my experience I would recommend to other men having aquablation to not be too active for three weeks afterward, drink lots of water to help clear up your urine, and don't get discourage if you have blood in your urine. It will hopefully clear up after a few weeks. The good news is that my urine flow is usually strong and I wake up less frequently from the need to urinate during the night. I am experiencing some urgency and have urinated a few times before reaching a toilet. I am working on that by watching the amount of liquids that I drink when away from home, and being mindful of where I can find a restroom. I also started Kegel exercises hoping that will help control urgency. I have a follow up visit with my surgeon in three weeks. Overall I am believe I have benefited from the procedure, but hope that I will experience better urine control as more time passes.

I have been following this board for a few weeks in anticipation of my aquablation procedure on 10-15. It was really helpful to learn about the experiences of others. So, now that I’ve gone through it, for what it’s worth here is my story.

My procedure was a little different…I am part of a trial to use aquablation to both reduce the prostate and remove tumors. I had a biopsy in July that indicated two prostate tumors with the lowest possible Gleason score of 6 (3 +3). Initially the recommended treatment was aquablation for BPH (my prostate was about 80 grams) and surveillance for the cancer. But a genomic test indicated the cancer cells were aggressive and this trial was just beginning, so I hoped to be included to have a chance of removing the cancer, reducing my prostate, and having the best chance of normal function afterwards. I am 54 years old.

The surgery was done 10-15. It was basically the same as aquablation for BPH, except 95% of my prostate was removed (all but the capsule which is where the essential parts are located). The surgery was delayed about an hour because an instrument had broken, but once started it lasted about two hours. I was in the hospital one night afterwards.

At first there was no blood in the urine which surprised the nurses, but eventually it started. Through the catheter they washed out my bladder with saline all night, as others have reported.

I had an erection the very next morning, which was a pleasant surprise. I went home with the catheter for six days, which was not pleasant. I would have liked to have been more active, as I felt like I was physically able to the next day, but when I tried to walk the catheter pulled against the tip of my penis, which was very irritating and painful. I finally decided to just wait until it was taken out. It was frustrating to just sit around for that long, feeling like you could do a lot more. Being patient was maybe the hardest thing.

They removed the catheter this morning. It was maybe the greatest feeling of relief I have ever experienced. It came right out without any pain or discomfort, and I passed the voiding test with flying colors. My urine was still pretty red. I went by my office afterwards just to check in, but didn’t stay as I wanted to gauge my urinary function before spending a full day at work. I didn’t want to spend the day at the office peeing down my leg.

Not to worry. My urinary function is almost 100%. It’s a little difficult to hold it for a long time, it burns some to pee and there is still a little blood and tissue coming out, but not too much. The flow is much improved, it comes out like a firehose and then doesn’t last long because of the volume. When I’m done it shuts off immediately and doesn’t keep dribbling out like before. I wore a pad all day and there are traces of urine in it, but not much. I am very surprised.

I must say, so far so good. Tomorrow, one week after surgery, I plan to spend a full day at the office. Over the past couple of years, at least a half dozen times a day I’ve walked the length of our floor, about 100 yards one way, to go to the men’s room. I am very curious to see how that goes tomorrow.

The big test comes in December, with another PSA to see if the cancer is gone. But for now the relief of the BPH symptoms is much appreciated. I may sleep the night through tonight for the first time in years.

My restrictions are light activity for three weeks after surgery, i.e. no lifting of anything over 15 lbs, no pressure on the prostate region from cycling, riding a mower, golf cart, UTV, tractor or the like. Basically walking and other gentle low-impact exercise is okay. After that, the activity level is based on tolerance, with blood in the urine as the gauge for tolerance level. They said I can drink alcohol in moderation, but I think I will abstain for that three-week period.

As I was finishing up this post, my wife came over to see what I was doing. As a test, we messed around for a bit and I got an almost instant, full erection. I don’t think I’m quite ready to follow through on that, it’s still pretty sore down there, but it seems promising.

Sorry if any of this is TMI, but the reason I was interested in this board was to learn about such things. Inquiring minds want to know.

More to come as the weeks go by….

@tiger14
Congrats and here's to a complete recovery and no cancer. All the best.