1. Community
  2. Men's health
  3. Prostate Problems

FLA for BPH and Chronic Prostatitis.... Long Post

Posted , 25 users are following.

joe74831
joe74831

Hey men, as some of you know, I am scheduled for FLA (focal laser ablation) with Dr. K in Houston TX next Thursday

A little back ground, I am 54 with a 45 gm prostate that has the dreaded median lobe.  I had a failed PAE in Jan 2016, I had a really bad allergic reaction during/following the procedure, and it took months to get over it. Myself and the Pae Doc assumed since it took so long to clear up that it was a reaction to the beads used. HOWEVER yesterday in prep for the FLA procedure, I took ONE Bactrim (which I had  taken tons of several years ago with no problems. ) And within 2 hours my whole upper body was covered in blisters and hives. Went straight to the Doc, and he started me on a IV of prednisone, and then gave me a second round 4 hours later, and a 3rd round this morning. It seems to have helped tremendously, and stopped the spots from blistering and peeling this time.

So needless to say Dr K has switched me to a different oral antibiotic.

Dr K is going to be trying something new with me, in addition to the FLA for the BPH, he is going to try and cure my chronic prostatis at the same time,he says obviously that is causing lots of scar tissue in my prostate,

Step one, I sent a sample of my prostate fluid for a DNA result. To my surprise, even tho I had no current symptoms that I could notice. I had medium bacterial load, with 3 different bacteria present in the prostate fluid.

I sent the results to DR K, and actually called and discussed the results with the CEO to get his recommendations.  I have NEVER seen a doc do something like that So needless to say I really feel like he goes above and beyond. He gave ne a call, and said the antibiotic that he strongly recommended was VERY expensive, and his cost was $1,000 he was very apologetic for having to charge extra, but I was totally fine with it. Most men with chronic prostatits  would pay anything for the possibility of actually curing it.

Here is the current plan:

Cefdinir 300mg orally twice a day for two weeks starting two days before the procedure

Invanz IV the day before the day of and the day after the procedure

Ceftriaxone 1 gram intraprostatic the day of the procedure

He is going to inject that last one directly into the prostate after he finishes with the ablation.

The hope is LOTS of the bacteria will be killed by the ablation itself, and the follow up with all the other meds will completely get rid of any that remains.

And hopefully since he will be removing most if not all of the blockages in my prostate, it will not be as easy for bacteria to set up shop again.

Even tho this is a very expensive approach, and its not clear if insurance will cover any of it, even tho they gave a pre-approval letter. Dr K says not to get my hopes up, but I am sure gonna try to turn it in.

Thanks to John and all of the other men who give such great support.

I will keep everybody up to date.

 

3 likes, 137 replies

137 Replies

Prev Next
  • joe74831
    joe74831

    Posted

    Thanks buddy I am ready to give it a try, and clean the pipes out lol.
    • kenneth1955
      kenneth1955 joe74831

      Posted

      That's great.  Just take it easy.  Hope it all works the same.  Let us know.  A lot a men like to know.  We all want to pee better but a procedures that saves our sex life is important to  Take care  Ken

    • joe74831
      joe74831 kenneth1955

      Posted

      Thanks Kenneth, taking it easy is very hard for me to do, but I am trying lol. I can tell everybody one thing, this sleeping thru a night without having to get up is amazing. It has been so many years since I have been able to do that, I had forgotten how rested you feel.

      And on another good note, even with a catheter in, I woke up with a very strong erection this morning, which even tho it was uncomfortable with the catheter in, it at least let me know thats still working.

    • kenneth1955
      kenneth1955 joe74831

      Posted

      Yes that can be.  If you have some kind of lube put some around the tip and the catheter.  It dose help.  How long are you going to have the catheter in.   When I had my Urolift done 2 1/2 years ago I had one for 3 days It's a pain but I was able to deal with it.  It is going to feel so good when it come out.  Just relax and be careful .   Ken 

    • joe74831
      joe74831 kenneth1955

      Posted

      Thanks Ken, I have to wear it for 7 days. So I have 4 more days to go.
    • kenneth1955
      kenneth1955 joe74831

      Posted

      Just be careful  Don't make any sudden moves.  Hope all goes well for you   Ken 

    • Motoman
      Motoman ktmxc-f

      Posted

      Katy-m,

      Do you think riding that scooter has anything to do with your prostate problems? I think it has some relevance, but can’t find much online about it.  I have to orange bikes, and a white KTM, so recognized your screen name.

    • ktmxc-f
      ktmxc-f Motoman

      Posted

      Hi Motoman,

      My prostate was measured 89 cc by Mri. It's large.  I sometimes  have extra urgency when riding the bike.Do you ride much? I ride trails, not much track.

    • joe74831
      joe74831 ktmxc-f

      Posted

      Hello Kt and thanks for asking. I have been meaning to do an update. So far everything is great. I have had no pain, other than some hemorrhoid pain for a few days after the procedure from where he went in my back side.

      Other than that, everything is great, I still have a small amount of blood in my semen, but ejaculation is way better than before, and my stream is already back to pre procedure levels. I also had a PVR scan done last week, and my bladder was almost completely empty.

      As far as the antibiotics, I am cautiously optimistic, so far not even a hint of any infection or prostatitis. For the first time in several years, I do not constantly feel my prostate. I am hopeful this worked, and if it does I think it will really help a lot of other guys as well.

      Dr K is also optimistic, and is researching doing just a prostatitis protocol for men who do not need the BPH procedure. He can do it in the office just using ultra sound, and the antibiotics that are recommended.

      So in short I am so far very pleased with the results, and hopefully things will just get better.

      Thanks Joe

       

    • Motoman
      Motoman ktmxc-f

      Posted

      Katy,

      yeah, I ride at least once or twice a week. Mostly trails and touring now, gave up the racing when I turned 50 four years ago. I am in the northwest. My prostate was not large, but I always wonder if the riding irritates it. But I won’t give up while I am able. I would self cath again before giving up the riding.

      I am following Joe and the prostatitis, as Dr K thinks I may have a mild case. I had the FLA done in February.

    • stan98754
      stan98754 joe74831

      Posted

      What is your progress after FLA ?

      Im going to FLA just tomorow . Stan

    • brian34488
      brian34488 stan98754

      Posted

      Hi Stan, make sure you use the enema to minimize risk of infection before your FLA, yes every thing went really well and so easy, nothing went wrong, the only issue was after having FLA I then realized I had to retrain my bladder to hold more fluid and hold on longer, so although Dr K unblocked my urine pathway which I am grateful for, I still have to go to the toilet often but not as much as before so yes I am a lot better now and sleep better now but still have issues which only retraining my bladder will fix, let me know how things go for you kind regards Brian.
    • kenneth1955
      kenneth1955 stan98754

      Posted

      Good luck Stan.  Doctor K.  is a good guy and he does care.  Ken
    • Howard31850
      Howard31850 brian34488

      Posted

      Hi Brian - Do you also do Kegel exercises to strengthen your external sphincter muscle? Sometimes the prostate can be so large that it acts like an extra sphincter muscle to hold the pee back so when the prostate size is reduced around the urethra this "extra" sphincter muscle is removed which puts more demand on the real external sphincter muscle which may be weak after years of underuse and cause dribbling until it is strengthened.

      Good luck to you and Stan!

      Howard

    • brian34488
      brian34488 Howard31850

      Posted

      Hi Howard, yes I am using kegal exercizes, but I have no issues just need to learn to drink more and hold on longer, thanks.
Back to top
Prev Next

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.