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Is HoLep recovery worth the procedure?
I had Holep with a Dr. in Boise-Urologist Austen Slade. Today makes 10 days post surgery. I’m 51 in general good health, no allergies or underlying issues. My BPH was at its max , complete blockage. Prostate and Median Lobe. I could not no. 1 and a catheter was being recommended indefinitely. A cystoscope exam with my surgeon showed I was one of few patients with this condition that can be treated with possibly preserving all / most sexual functions. That being said. Here is my experience ( so far)
My outcome doesn’t represent all outcomes as different patients have different experiences and health risks. Post procedure, my catheter was removed in less than 14 hours, with the ability to use the restroom after a supervised test run by 5 am the next morning.
Since I showed no signs of distress, coherent, no fever , or pain (slight discomfort ,yes) it started off really good. After several drs discussed my progress I was released.
Follow up calls were daily for a few days.
Day 2-4 surprisingly , urine remained clear. Also most bathroom trips , occasional light blood and a sting that subsides quickly especially with ibuprofen.
Today is day 5 , some blood today in the evening , dismal sting , but zero pain since after surgery. Completely mobile.
Day 10 only thing left is a numb feeling in the area treated. My bathroom health is 100 percent restored. If there’s any irrepressible symptoms or damage. It’s too soon to know.
It appears to function but I’m avoiding any excitement for 4 weeks.
As of now, Not straining or lifting anything heavy. Drinking loads of Water for first week to keep flushing. Resting is also important.
Wishing you all future patients a speedy recovery and may your pathology test be negative as well.
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I too had a HoLEP with a Dr. in Boise-Urologist Austen Slade one month ago. I am 74 years old and had BPH symptoms for about 25 years. Getting up at 4-5 times a night, urinating 20-25 a day. Had UroLift procedure 7 years ago which helped some for about 4 years. Most recently developed a large bladder stone and had nights of being up 13 times. My local doctor wanted to do a TURP. I researched and found out about HoLEP. Only a few doctors in my state could do this. Reached out to Dr. Slade, we had a Boise trip planned in two weeks to visit family there. He called me and arranged an office visit when we arrived on a Friday, performed the surgery the following Wednesday. Took the catheter out the next morning, had some minor irritation and bleeding for a week, took a week off from build Habitat homes and then back my same schedule. This procedure was way less painful than the UroLift, quicker recovery and much improved results. Now I often sleep through the night and no more frequency and urgency issues. I highly recommend this procedure, and the very professional team Dr. Slade has. For me they were an answer to my prayers!
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3 Reactions@sittingdeer I believe it can be worth it with experienced surgeons. Unfortunately I rushed into it with an inexperienced surgeon and after 9 months are headed for permanent leakage. The practice is dismissive with little support other than referring for more iffy procedures like AUS. It is a miserable quality of life. Beware of the hype and check out your surgeon.
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3 Reactions12 days post-op
I'm glad to see most of you are pleased with the holep results so far. After 12 days post-op my experience is nothing but negative. After being diagnosed with BPH about 15 years ago I had been managing it with medications with acceptable results. Getting up once per night was manageable. More recently though, ultrasounds showed I was not fully voiding my bladder and was retaining 200-300 ml on a regular basis. The urologist told me this could lead to serious problems in the future so I opted for holep. I spent one night in the hospital and the following day the catheter was removed and I was discharged home. Every day since my discharge I have had total incontinence. It is constant leakage with my bladder never filling up enough to even pee normally. The urine leaks out of my bladder as soon it enters from my kidneys. I have not seen any improvement in these first 12 days. Maybe it is just too soon to judge but I now question if I made the right decision to go forward with holep. I went from a very manageable situation to one which is now much worse. I'll just have to see what happens over the next few weeks but thus far it has been terrible and I am afraid to even leave my house. Quality of life has greatly deteriorated.
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1 Reaction@oldfiddler I understand completely. My surgeon downplayed the side effects of holep and now I am finding it is much worse than I anticipated. In hindsight I would have trusted my body instead and not done it. I have no idea what the final outcome might be but right now my quality of life has greatly suffered.
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2 Reactions@leo3
I had similar issues during the first two weeks I didn't even had to use the toilet. Im going on week 8th and it's much better. The incontinence is present but manageable, i usually change my pads two times a day and for the night I use the overnight Depends just to be on the safe side in case of overnight leakage. As for going out I wear a regular Depend and I can be out 3 t 4 hours safely.
@hellofreedom
I will start physical therapy tomorrow will post result.
@leo3 I had holep almost 3 months ago. Surgery was fine , left after few hours and removed the catheter the next day. Small blood drops in urine stopped about a week ago but leakage and dripping is very very annoying. I don’t even feel I’m dripping most of the time . Using about 3-4 diapers every 24 hours . Iron Flow is great and much better than before but leaking is terrible. Done at Kaiser and I believe surgeon removed A LOT including the muscles by the bladder. She said leaking could take up to one year. Some statics shows that 5% won’t even fully recover after one year .I hope this is not the case .
I am scheduled for a RORP in May. Am thinking if I have continued leakage I would try the ProAct system. Has anyone ever tried this or know anything about it? I know there is a mesh sling, utheral bulking also, but the ProAct seemed better??
@hellofreedom Thanks for your reply. It sounds a bit more encouraging. I am still in the constant leaking stage and have not seen any improvement. It's good to know you are doing better.