PAE vs. Urolift

Hi Soben, welcome to the forums. Pae seems to be a mostly unknown method in these forums. I think I have read replies from only two patients and neither one was good, although one was recent and the Dr told him that PAE would take six months, I believe to be effective. In theory, it seems to be a great idea; starve the blood flow from the prostate and cause it to shrink. I'll bet that procedure is a future winner and maybe there are hundreds of successful operations already. Hopefully, other patients will see these forums and speak up.   

Dr Kella should be a good choice for Urolift, as he would be one of the more experienced urolift surgeons, especialy in Texas.  I believe that urolift is a reasonably good solution to quickly get you off the meds and buy you some time if you just can't stand the thought of a more-invasive procedure and you want to wait and see if better solutions come along. Your prostate will likely continue to grow and eventually you'll be facing another surgery. 

My opiinion, based upon my experience alone, as I have said many times on these threads, knowing what I know now, when time comes for either medications or surgery I would find some way to have the HOlep procedre done as I did in October. It was painless and trouble-free except for the trip to find a Holep surgeon as it is not done in Texas. I am now 100%, like I never had a problem. 

Whatever you decide, best of luck to you and don't forget to give back by posting your experience here. There are many thousands of BPH sufferers who can benefit from your experience. 

Hi Soben;  I had "PAE" on Sept. 10th of this year.  Flew to Alexandria, Virginia and had one of the pioneers of the procedure (Dr. Sandeep Bagla) of Inova Hospital perform the surgery.  The reason I had it is because I was getting up 4 times a night to go to the bathroom.  It has now been a little over 3 months since the surgery and I have seen "NO RELIEF" whatsoever.  Still getting up 4 times a night.  He told me it would take anywhere from 30 days to 6 months to see relief.  His goal was to get me to "two times per night" for the bathroom.  By "embolizing" the arterys and veins that lead into the prostate it is suppose to "shrink" the prostate by 20 to 25% over this time period.  Hence, giving you some relief from the constant nightly bathroom breaks.  I have tried all the usual meds with no relief.  The tamsulosin and avodart routine or as some here call it the "castration drugs".  Thats a good name for them too.  I have since discontinued taking those drugs.  Here's something that does help me sleep atleast for the first 3 1/2 hours of the night.  Get a script for "Oxybutynin Chloride 5mg" and take it at bedtime.  It helps the bladder control the urge to go.  Also at bedtime take 4 oz. of "tart cherry juice".  Get the real stuff not the blended crap.  Also put on a "Breathe Right Lavender strip" at bedtime.  It goes over your nose.  Not nostrils!!!!   It has a calming effect and help you doze off quicker.  Those 3 things have helped me immensley get to sleep and stay asleep for the first 3 1/2 to 4 hours.  After that its every  one hour and forty five minutes up and to the bathroom.  Some here swear by the "button turp" procedure but it is "major stuff" and Iam going to avoid it for now.   Hope this helps answer atleast some of your questions.  My understanding on the "Urolift" is that it does not stop the prostate from "growing" so it is only a temporary fix.  Hope to hear back from you.  Take Care.   ChuckP

Hi again;  I forgot to explain what "tart cherry juice" does.  It acts alot like a natural sedative and relaxes you and helps you fall asleep.  Its not a myth as it does work.  I found out about it from Dr. Oz.  You have to get the "real stuff" not all the mixed blends. 

I had PAE 1 month ago, done by prof Pisco in madrid.

Just had 1 month check up.

Prostrate volume was 163ml now 136ml (a normal size is 30ml).

Retained urine volume: was 127ml 

, now 2.5 ml.

Used to need bathroom 4 or 5 times a night - every 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Now maybe neef one visit, but usually go 7 or 8 hours - the whole night.

Only negative side effect, had been blood in semen from about weeks 3 to 4, though now seems clear.

I was also suffering complete retrograde ejaculation, for about the last year. Things here also seem to be returning to normal.

I travelled from Scotland, could have gone to Southampton but believe they had only done the procedure 15 times. I was prof Pisco's PAE patient 732, and total price with flights and stay was less than UK price. 

I'm 59. The CT scan showed I should be a straightforward case. But one artery did an acute angle turn. Ended up the professor had to use a special catheter for the very first time. He said afterwards that he doubted Southampton would have been able to do this.

So very glad I chose Madrid.

Just found out that Hospital St Louis had now done  over 20,000 embolisims. Embolism of Uterine fibroids started about 20 years ago. so not a new idea. I guess procedure has just been adapted to the prostate.

Thakns guys really appreciate our input.

I am leaning towards the urolift prcedure.  Seems to be the least invasive.  Might have another issue - neurogenic bladder.  So I am waiting on the results.

I will keep you updated with the results.  Hopefully will help  someone else.

 

Hi I am living in Dallas, Tx.. My Urologist suggested that I should go for TURP . My Prostate is 5.5cm or  30 to 50 gms . He also suggested to look into UROLIFT. I ahve read about Urolift.. not many doctors know this procedure. One concern brought to my attention is forming of Scar Tissues adn Calcium formation since you have a foreigh object inside your body. However when I read the FAQ on this system, they indicate that its very easy to remove the implant if needed . So its kind of confusing. Woudl appreciate any comments.......    

Hi all,

I'd like to try to stir up this discussion.  Seems to me that PAE v Urolift is THE question of the moment. If you have experience or perspective on this, can you please contribute.

Here's what's true about both procedures:

Relatively new (no longterm studies, but lots of positive short-term and anecdotal evidence)

Neither has risk of sexual side effects or incontinence. So who would want to do anything else, if one of these might be sufficient?

$5k - $15k

Minimally invasive. Inpatient.

Good results for most men, though not all. Can take a couple months or more before full benefits are realized.

Not clear yet how long results last.

Having a medial lobe can compromise results for both

PAE involves radiation (though acceptable levels?). Urolift recovery can be tough for a week.

I'm trying to decide between them. So any insights appreciated. Thanks.

Dan

On Wednesday I met with my PCP to discuss my urologist pushing, hard, to have me do a TURP.  

My internist agreed that TURP would personally be his last choice, given the side effects.  As to PAE, he was not familiar with the procedure, so I gave him a printout of the web page from Tampa General Hospital, the gold standard in this area, and he noted there it is currently in medical trial and it is not yet an FDA approved procedure.

He advised that means insurance would probably not cover the procedure, yet.  

Have any of those who've had PAE done been able to get their medical insurance to pay for this procedure?

According to NIH, by the way, the clinical trials are being done at 8 US hospitals (3 orther US hopsitals had withdrawn), plus 1 in Europe.  The Clinical Trials identifier is NCT01789840.