Having PAE next week, what can I expect the next day?

@oldfiddler It will DEFINITELY get better. Why? Because PAE reduces prostate size by PHYSICALLY SHRINKING it by denying the prostate lobes, blood supply. So these enlarged prostate lobes atropy (shrink). It takes time for the tissue to shrink and the process can be painful. Other prostate reduction procedures, physically REMOVE the enlarged prostate lobes using laser heat, electricity, etc. So the procedure immediately burns off (green light laser), or enucleate (scoop out in Holep). In Holep, the contents of the removed prostate tissue are "vacuumed out" during the procedure so nothing is left in the bladder. In greenlight, TURP etc, the lasered off, cut off over grown prostate tissue is left behind in the bladder, and gets passed out with urine, over the following weeks. Had Holep on June 19- ZERO pain. If I didn't remmeber I had Holep, I wouldn't have realsie I had the procedure!

I had the PAE on last Thursday and the first night was hell...I came in with a foley and had to leave with one. I was up every hour the first night feeling like I was going to burst thru the foley and sometimes had some leaking over it. Had quite a bit of pain/pressure on both ends. It is now Saturday and it is better. I think I may be able to get rid of the bag in 10 days or so (that is what my doctor/radiologist is saying.) I am having extreme constipation (even though drinking metamucil)..my post instructions recommend taking stool softener before procedure and after which I haven't done yet.

@slopez2026 I am sorry that you were in such pain. I think that the descriptions of the pain I read didn’t match the pain I felt. I guess that you experienced the same. I was only given acetaminophen and ibuprofen for pain and swelling.

I think strong medicine would have helped. However, they cause constipation. Prior to the procedure I was taking psyllium husk capsules every day to provide more fiber. I waited to resume taking them until I was finished with the one week of antibiotics.

I wish you a speedy recovery and getting rid of the foley as soon as possible.

And now day 22 since the P.A.E. and I'm doing fine. Stream is strong on most but not all urinations, I'm definitely not going as often but still going above what I expect the norm to be, and I found blood in my semen tonight, which I found surprising. There's no doubt the procedure was a success, things have improved. Not like when I was 16 years old, but better than it's been for a very long time. I expect things will continue to improve, slowly, for the next couple of months. Bladder issues, like retention, take much longer to improve than urine flow. So be patient..........

PAE was approx 10 days ago about 2 hours away from my home. I took out the catheter yesterday with the approval and instructions from my doctor who performed the PAE. Since I was having so much pain and swelling in the penis he recommended taking it out. (the catheter was in approx 2 months since a surgery I had back in May). My local urologist would not take it out until I was over 2 weeks in from the surgery which was around first week of August. I was going to go to the ER but my PAE doctor explained it would be ok if I followed his steps. A few hours later I started urinating slowly and hoping it will improve.

It has been over a month since having PAE. I had the first video appointment with the doctor yesterday afternoon. After discussing my progress he said he is discouraged with my results so far. This morning it took me, timed with a stopwatch, 3 minutes 25.73 seconds to finish going pee. I only woke up once in the night at 12:34am to head to the restroom. The night before I was up five times, probably due to the watermelon at dinner.

I am not discouraged that it is taking longer than five weeks to see better results. If things start getting better I'll send him a note, otherwise the next appointment is in two months.

Oh, when I told the doctor that I was expecting a call within 3 days because it is on the discharge paperwork and did not receive one. He said that should not be on the paperwork because they don't do that. He is going to look into it and have it taken off. Their negligence caused me to go through the pain and burning without medication to help control it. I am hoping others don't have the same 'old' discharge paperwork.

@slopez2026
I was hoping to hear how you were doing! Glad everything is looking up. I live near this PAE provider and am considering the procedure.
Please keep us updated on your progress.

@slopez2026
What surgery did you have back in May? Was it something related to BPH?

@plynhky
thanks I am doing better and better, so darn happy to be rid of the catheter!

@plynhky
No I had a torn rotator cuff and bone spurs...seems this is what happened to me:
"Yes, anesthesia can temporarily stop your bladder from working normally, leading to a condition called postoperative urinary retention (POUR). Anesthetic drugs and pain-relieving opioids disrupt the nerve signals and relax the bladder muscles, meaning you might not feel the urge to pee even when your bladder is full."
My prostate was large before and this exacerbated the problem so I had to confront it which eventually resulted in the PAE...but not before spending 60 days with a catheter, just horrible.