Has anyone out there had a "Prostate Artery Embolization??

Jim James: Sounds interesting.  Would like to see more clinical information in regards to treating BPH.  With PAE, they have been doing it since 2009, since 2011 in the US.  There are 5-year studies available.  Dr. Bagla states that PAE works for 5 years for those with larger prostates with a 5% recurrance rate.  For small prostates, 10% recurrance rate. I'm supposing 50 cc prostate size is the line between large and small.  Will continue to research.  If the FDA has approved it for prostate cancer treatment, it may not be approved for BPH treatment.  Thanks for keeping us informed.

Well done wood duck. 

I was no 3 on th list by Dr Schlapoff. I had General anaesthetic and stayed in overnight. What about yourself? 

Wood Duck and Caringbah ......

both experience similar yo mine.

I had general anesthetic and stayed overnght.

Now ready for 6 month MRI and PSA tests.

Fron time to time i get the urge and frequency to pee..but overall PAE is a huge blessing. Iwas #10 at Liverpool Hospital and the Doctors and staff are excellent .

Sam & Caringbah,

Not sure what my number was but I believe they are over 30 now. Can't say enough about the staff at Liverpool Hospital, especially Drs. Catt & Schlaphoff. They managed my expectations and apprehension perfectly. Can't understand why the Urologists aren't coming onboard with this. Maybe I'm naive but in Aus in 2016 I just can't believe its self interest.

Good luck with your 6mth MRI Sam. I'll update this post from time to time but right now I'm stoked with the result.

Wood Duck, I totally agree. When I had my PAE a year ago, Glen Schlapoff was doing it in his own. I was very impressed with him...thoroughly nice bloke without any airs and graces. Even better he is very competent. 

You ou forget very quickly what life was like before...lost sleep at night...urgency and also hesitation. I had to stop using urinals because it took me forever. I'd be standing there and guys would be coming and going. It was embarrassing so I used the cubicles instead. 

Now life is normal and like normal people I don't even think about urinating..that's the best part, 

Hi Stringer212,

Before my GL laser in 2012 I had to self cath sporadically due to the prostitic urethra being squeezed shut by the enlarged prostate. Then I got to the point I would wake up every night about 3AM needing to go but blocked. I found that getting up and drinking a shot of whiskey and walking around the kitchen island for about 10 minutes would loosen me up and I could go. At the  time I was taking flomax but it stopped working after about three months. What was strange was sometimes I could go with no problem, other times just razor blades and dribbles and I'd have to cath. But when I got blocked every night at 3 AM I went for the laser. Had a second laser on the bladder neck in 2013 and a turp in April 2015.

My prostate grows like a weed and was 300g before the 2015 turp and 203g. after. I can pee OK and have not had a blockage but was concernecd about the rapid growth. Started taking dutasteride (avodart) 6 months ago. Have not had the prostate remeasured by sonogram yet. My research says avodart shrinks the prostate about 25% in 6 months. How long did you take the avodart? Did you measure your prostate before and after to determine if it shrank, and how much?

From posters it seems the PAE shrinks the prostate about 25% to 33%. I have wondered if this is in addition to any shrinkage from the avodart. You might be in a position to get an answer. Also when you stop dutasteride it stops blocking the conversion of testosterone to DHT so your prostate starts growing again. Does the PAE offset this regrowth?

​Bob

Hi Bob, I'm in about the same position as you.  I'm going to do a new discussion post about it within the next day.

I want to mention that I too had blockage about 3am but I've been able to experiment and learn something about it.  It only occurs when I've been sitting or laying for awhile.  If I walk around or jump up a few times, it goes away.  Or I can start a stream by sitting on the toilet then stand up to finish it.  This will wake me up and make it harder to return to sleep but it does get my stream going.

Jeff

Bob, thanks. Been taking Avodart for 2 yrs and Flomax for months - prostate not shrinking and now have prostate lobes into my bladder. Had a GL in 2008 and all went well. My Uro told me a TURP now would likely leave me incontinent - a 30/40% chance given my GL in 2008. Opted for PAE with Dr Bagla- tells me I should see positive results in a month or two or maybe before. Also told me I can always do other procedures if not happy with results - fair enough. He torched both sides of prostate with PAE. Bagla probably the best in USA and I trust the guy.  I will continue cauterizing and see what happens w/PAE. I can always do TURP down the road.

Re postings, I know Posters embellish their stories some and there is no 100% solution for BPH w/o some kind of side effect> however, the Bmajority of Posters are glad they did PAE regardless of results. Am still blocked, cauterizing and taking meds. Let's see what happens with PAE.

You mentioned having 2 GL and a Turp but no PAE. Any incontinence issues with GL/TURP back to back? Always an option for me later.

Bob, thanks for your quick response and will keep you posted on my results.  This is my 2nd day and was not expecting much so son. BTW, US Medicare paid for my PAE - now FDA approved. Cheers

Thanks Jeff. Looking forward to your new discussion thread. Given I have not even a flimsy stream, I will try your suggestions. Bob gave us a good one with the whiskey but not a fan of whiskey - thanks Bob.

Cheers Jeff.

Hi Stinger,

Wore diapers for about a month, but no long term incontinence. Only had about 5 seconds to get to a bathroom or urinal for several weeks, urgency was extreme. But needed to be sure I had stopped peeing for a good 30 seconds afterwards or I could dribble on the floor unexpectedly.

Classic turp in 2015 was an easier recovey and less painful than either of the two GL's. in 2012 and 2013. Also was able to send the tissue to pathology with the turp to test for cancer, and had none. Would recommend the turp over the GL, if it comes to that. The turp also removed a median lobe that protruded into the bladder which the two GL's did not.

The two GL's did not give me retro but the turp did. I was so worried about the retro but it was a total non issue, The first time about 6 weeks after the turp I forgot about it and didn't notice when it happened. Only figured it out after when I didn't see any mess. Had zero effect on my sensations.

Look forward to hearing your progress. I imagine it may take weeks at least, and maybe longer. My understanding of dutasteride is it shrinks the prostate about 25% in the first 6 months and maintains that level as long as you take it.

Bob

Jeff,

Tried a lot of things but could never figure out what was going on. The waking up was definitely due to night time posture. Also had greater frequency at night than during the day. What I couldn't figure out was why I could sometimes have a great stream. For me the laser turp solved the blockages, but not the diminished stream which kept coming back as my prostate grew. Had 3 procedures in 4 years. Can't keep trimming my prostate like I'm getting a yearly haircut.

Thanks Bob. Good synopsis and makes sense. Keep you posted on my PAE progress. And you are correct - several weeks down the road I'll know where thins are. I remain optimistic...Cheers

Thanks Bob. Could you expand on "the waking up was definitely due to night posture"...curious. Never heard that angle and who knows, I might be doing the same thing. Cheers

I'm 69. my kidney doc said the organs relax when you recline and the kidneys can do a better job of empying into the bladder causing more frequency at night. Why this would cause blockage I don't know but maybe some organs were resting on the prostate or maybe it also relaxed and expanded, I don't know. But every night after about 4 hours sleep I'd wake up busting to go and I'd be completely blocked. So sleeping 4 hours in a reclinined position was the obvious connection.

Bob

I also have had similar experiences with let's call it temporary acute retention after periods of inactivity or sleep. It might be after taking an afternoon nap, sitting for long periods of time, or as in your case waking up around 3am. Like yourself, I found that walking around helps. In the beginning, it was just for a couple of minutes. Later it required longer walks so to expedite matters I simply self catherized myself so I could go quickly back to bed. 

This topic was talked about in some other threads but a dedicated thread on the subject is a good idea. A very recent thread on improved bph symptons after horse back riding also deals with this topic, I wish just jumping a few times helped me but as mentioned it seems to require a much longer walk. Obviously, some physical mechanism is in play here and the answers don't seem to be forthcoming from you local urologist, so all we can do is experiement and share the results with others.

Jim

Here is a link to recent thread entitled "exercise in the treatment of prostate enlargement".

https://patient.info/forums/discuss/exercise-in-treatment-prostate-enlargment-512779?page=0#2105710

Thanks Bob . Great insight I'll watch out for when sleeping. I recline some when I sleep thus I need to watch this. Cheers

I had those symptoms and would walk around the room and through the house at 2 or 3 a.m. didn't know about the alcohol or I would've taken a number of shots for releaf. At Standford research for PAE they had me take an MRI for an accurate measurement of my prostate which was 174, I'm scheduled for a procedure with Dr. Bagla and can not wait to have this done. My retention had gotten so bad, standing and pushing and waiting and feeling as if I would explode that I would ask God ... Lord if it's my turn to die, please just let me pee first ... then take me.

ss3234,

My prostate was 203g. when I started dutasteride 6 months ago. I was considering PAE after I re-measured my prostate. However more serious medical conditions have put my prostate on the back burner for now. One of the early posts in this thread is from a poster with a very large (I believe 200G+ prostate) that was reduced by 35% with excellent results. When I was in full retention with no relief for hours I learned to self cath after my first midnight trip to the ER to be cathed.

 

I was concerned about the size of my prostate (174) until Dr. Bagla told me he had performed PAE on a prostate that was 600 with sucess.

I'll placed you in my prayers that all of your medical concerns be controlled to your satisfaction. Keep your head up!

ss3234,

Thank you.