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Calcium deposits in prostate limiting effectiveness of Aquablation

Posted , 5 users are following.

not_too_shabby
not_too_shabby

I'll start another topic more specific to my current condition. I had Aquablation about 6 weeks ago. I saw very little improvement from the procedure. My doctor commented after the procedure that during the hemostasis part of the procedure where they clean up any remaining tissue, there were calcium deposits in my prostate that he couldn't really remove. He was using a monopolar loop. Fast forward to Monday when I had a follow up. He did a cystoscopy and ultrasound and found that essentially the channel was defined now by the calcium deposits in my prostate. The Aquablation jet removed the issue, but the calcium is still there. At this point, my stream is adequate and I stopped the medication a couple weeks ago. My PVR was 37 which is decent. I am hardly peeing like a race horse liked I had hoped. Worse yet, I may need another procedure if my PVRs start going back up again but my doctor doesn't even seem to know how to remove the calcium. He said it's embedded in the tissue.

Anyone had this issue, or know how to get my body to reabsorb that calcium? Seems like a long shot, but I'll throw it out there.

Good news for those considering Aquablation that it did preserve ejaculation function.

1 like, 10 replies

10 Replies

  • michael31017
    michael31017 not_too_shabby

    Edited

    wow, is it possible for the calcified bits to break off and pass in the urine like kidney stones? That may or may not be uncomfortable. Congrats on the low PVR, that's not bad! Mine has come down from 300+ to around 200 as we approach 3 years since my TURPs.

    I wonder how calcium gets into the prostate tissue!

    • not_too_shabby
      not_too_shabby michael31017

      Edited

      My doctor thinks it's from a prostatitis infection that never cleared up. My body is using calcium to contain the infection. It seems less likely the calcium will break up and pass in the urine, but maybe over time my body can reabsorb it. I have been reading about how lack of vitamin K2 can cause your body to deposit calcium in soft tissue instead of bones. That may not apply in my case since the likely cause of the calcium is related to recurrent prostate infections in my 30s.

    • william0205
      william0205 not_too_shabby

      Edited

      Retired OR nurse here. It may be off label, but ask your urologist about using the transurethral ultrasonic lithotripter they use for kidney stones to break up the calcium

  • Richard14755
    Richard14755 not_too_shabby

    Posted

    I hadn't heard of this before until I had a TURP last month. The urologist found that part of my prostate was calcified and that there were also stones, some of which had made their way to my bladder. He removed the stones (in some cases crushing them first to make it easier to get out) and "resected", i.e. removed the calcified prostate tissue. I had previously had an unsuccessful PVP treatment, and he attributed the calcification to this, and said that he had seen it before with PVP. I have read online about a small number of cases where the calcium returned following surgery although he said his experience did not bear this out.

    Incidentally there always seem to be comments on this forum about how appalling TURP is: I would have gone for HOLEP but before the PVP had had urolift (that didn't work either) and most surgeons won't do HOLEP after Urolift because of the risk of the anchors for the clips jamming the morcellator used for HOLEP. Hindsight is great but it would have told me that in my case (with large median lobe that the doctor was confident he could clip to one side) that it was a complete waste of time...

    • not_too_shabby
      not_too_shabby Richard14755

      Posted

      Thanks for the reply. Did your doctor use a bipolar loop to remove the calcium? How did he crush the stones? My doctor had scraped some of the calcified tissue with a mono-polar loop, but he said the tissue was like concrete and he had to just scrape it out, but apparently didn't remove enough as my urinary symptoms didn't really improve. My doctor wants to try a laser to break up the calcium and then follow up with a bipolar loop. Hopefully that will work, but nervous about him just going in with a couple different tools and hoping one works.

  • Richard14755
    Richard14755 not_too_shabby

    Posted

    I've checked his report from the operation an the only reference is to using monopolar energy, nothing specifically about the loop. Regarding the larger stones the report refers to a 26F stone crusher.

    After the operation he seemed confident that he had got rid of all of the calcium/calcified tissue. He told me that he thought my recovery could be lengthy because of the amount of inflammation that was involved. Having had two failed operations I have learnt to manage my expectations - over a month out from the most recent one (where the stones were removed) the intense pain I had before has gone but still waiting for a big improvement in flow and noticeable relief of general symptoms. I found one article from searching where calcification had returned repeatedly after an initial TURP and follow ups, with the doctors believing that it came back each time the prostate was in the process of healing. Ultimately they broke this cycle by simply scraping it off rather than resecting.

    I really hope that this operation has dealt with it once and for all - and the consultant seems reasonably confident - but too early to assume anything at this stage.

    • not_too_shabby
      not_too_shabby Richard14755

      Edited

      that's interesting they were able to remove it with the monopolar loop did you have an ache in your abdomen near your bladder? i feel like that is caused by the calcium

  • Richard14755
    Richard14755 not_too_shabby

    Posted

    Before the stones/calcified prostate were removed I periodically had severe pain around my groin area, not so much in my abdomen. So much so that a few days before the operation I went to A&E and was given some strong painkillers. Since the operation I have still had pain from time to time but less severe. Big question for me is whether the stones/calcification come back. As for the "peeing like a race horse" I am still waiting. After three operations I am still hoping for the best but have to manage expectations.

    • not_too_shabby
      not_too_shabby Richard14755

      Posted

      Keep us posted on your recovery. I have had 2 unsuccessful surgeries myself. Not looking forward to another, but the calcification seems to be what is limiting my urine flow.

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