PAE patients: 5 easy questions for you
Posted , 13 users are following.
There are many valuable PAE comments on this forum but they are scattered over multiple threads. My goal is to consolidate the PAE experience in a single thread. All questions can be answered yes/no so an insignificant amount of time is required. Feel free to elaborate or copy and paste your previous post regarding your PAE experience. To keep the thread focused, please do not post second-hand accounts or share your (or urologist's) opinions on PAE (or any other procedure) if you have not had PAE. Thanks in advance to those who post. And if you think this post was a dumb idea, don't tell me, I'm very sensitive! :-)
1) How long has it been since you underwent PAE?
2) Did the procedure relieve your BPH symptoms to your satisfaction?
3) Was the recovery period reasonable and without unexpected pain or complications?
4) If you were on medication prior to PAE, were you able to discontinue the meds?
5) If you could start over, would you do PAE again or try something else?
0 likes, 23 replies
CarlosZ lee56659
Posted
2.Yes, Ipss before 25, after is 6
3. First couple of days extreme frequency a little bladder pain. Third day after procedure ran two miles
4. Two flomax per day and now taking one every other day, hopefully off soon.
5. Pae is the least invasive low side effect procedure. I would do it again before any other procedure.
Be advised I do not use alcohol, spicy food or caffeine. Workout 4 to 5 days a week. Still taking flomax, hopefully off soon. Flow is good, frequency is 3 to 4 hours, sleep through most nights. Can hold off urination, urgency is gone.
Hope this helps.
lee56659 CarlosZ
Posted
tom86211 lee56659
Posted
Lee,
Answers:
1) it has been 8 months since my PAE
2) my symptoms have been improved only slightly, but my uro says my prostate is no longer blocking the flow and that my issues are now related to my bladder, so, technically, the PAE worked
3) the recovery was quite easy - a few days of burning sensation when urinating - taken care of with some Tylenol and Ibuprofen and Flowmax. After about a week I was pretty much back to where I was before the procedure.
4) yes, I was able to discontinue the Flowmax and that was one of my goals
5) I would absolutely do the PAE again.
If, as my urologist says, my prostate is no longer the issue, then the PAE worked without having the prostate cut or heated or physically damaged in any way.
If my urologist is wrong and my prostate requires additional reduction, I would happily repeat the PAE. I am currently undergoing pelvic floor exercises and PTNS for overactive bladder. If these procedures don't improve my urgency/frequency/nocturia I will schedule another PAE. Fortunately, it's repeatable.
Tom
lee56659 tom86211
Posted
stan98754 lee56659
Posted
1 year
2) Did the procedure relieve your BPH symptoms to your satisfaction?
No , poor effects. PAE is not effective in case of big median lobe
3) Was the recovery period reasonable and without unexpected pain or complications?
small side effects , just few days
4) If you were on medication prior to PAE, were you able to discontinue the meds?
No, after few months the problems were worsened ,even . I used CIC ( self cathing) every day .
5) If you could start over, would you do PAE again or try something else? Report this
No way. The situation was so bad I found much better and effective method FLA- focal laser ablation . Now Im 3 weeks after and light at end of the tunnel ahead.Pls note : in case of big median lobe PAE is uneffective
❤ 0
Truthmatters lee56659
Posted
2) Did the procedure relieve your BPH symptoms to your satisfaction? Yes
3) Was the recovery period reasonable and without unexpected pain or complications? Very
4) If you were on medication prior to PAE, were you able to discontinue the meds? No meds, rejected them.
5) If you could start over, would you do PAE again or try something else? PAE again.
mike588 lee56659
Posted
I had PAE twice after the surgeon convinced me it was worth a try - I have the large median lobe, he insisted it was not a problem.
PAE was not effective at all, and the recovery period of 7 days or so after without a Foley catheter probably put too much stress on my bladder.
It might work for some, I don't trust the surgeons at all, either it's for money or for fame and glory they will take you on not understanding the anatomy and how to prevent damage to bladder after.
Basically they are hoping they get the material into the right place to block the blood supply. Sorry I would stay away from PAE if I had known.
stan98754 mike588
Posted
Same story Mike, PAE is not valid with big median lobe.
Experiences doctors know this, but yours and mine not. Our bad luck. Fortunatelly there is most effective method for big median lobe - FLA . 3 weeks passed from my procedure in Houston and first relief is here , I'm In condition like 3 years ago ( no more nocturia, no incontinence and much better sex like before without any side effects. I stopped even CIC self cathing what was in run 2 years. And this is still the beginning , full effect of FLA is expected just after 4-6 months, when all ablated tissue by laser will be absorbed by your imune system. Who need more details , pls PM me. , Stan
mike588 stan98754
Posted
I was worried about that and specifically asked, he said it was not a problem, and I believe I spoke to someone who said he had the median lobe and it worked like a miracle for him. So I was all in and hopeful for a similar miracle.
Stan I also had FLA but unfortunately not as effective as others, I still have to take Flomax. Probably the two FLA's caused bladder damage, and combined with CIC it's come back somewhat. My Urologist after DRE said it still feels pretty big, though that might be normal with FLA. All in all I believe the FLA has helped me enough for a while - no side effects and although I still feel a bit obstructed I rarely feel desperate to go, plus my mood has improved a lot. I continued with CIC for about a year after FLA mainly to try and get my bladder back in shape. I might still do it once in a while to make sure I'm sure holding more than 100 ml PVR
stan98754 mike588
Posted
HI Mike,
yes I have you in my records in Excell table ,
this is your record :
"Febr. 2017 Little relief, still flomax , CIC sometime, PSA 4, PV 115,BML"
Pls add some other data ,if possible.
I can send you all table with 20 FLA patients, among them are 2 mixed results and 1 poor results.
You are in mixed results. Pls let me know if you suffered/ suffer by prostatitis. As is known this disease can decrease effectivity of FLA.
Just PM we can communicate in details. Nice Day,
Stan
richp21 lee56659
Posted
One year.
2) Did the procedure relieve your BPH symptoms to your satisfaction?
Marginal improvement. Had hoped for more.
3) Was the recovery period reasonable and without unexpected pain or complications?
Recovery was not bad at all. I did travel for the procedure, and definitely needed my wife to help me the first couple of days.
4) If you were on medication prior to PAE, were you able to discontinue the meds?
Yes, after some weeks I was able to discontinue using the meds, which I am very happy about.
5) If you could start over, would you do PAE again or try something else?
I would want to do a more thorough diagnostic work up to make sure that my prostate size was what causing the LUTS, and not bladder issues, and not small bladder size (as one uro doc mentioned in my case). If prostate size was definitely the problem, I would do PAE again.
george53690 lee56659
Posted
I had the PAE in Sydney by Dr Schlapoff. It has been 5 weeks. I had some issues post op caused by very low urine PH. Painful that! It took about two weeks to raise the ph. I was taking Ciallis and Avodart. I have stopped both about two weeks ago.
It worked really well. I was 180 on size. I would recommend it. I would have it prior to having a biopsy based on my experience. Shrink the prostate and a lot of problems go away.
On another tangent I had a rectal 12 needle random biopsy. I got an infection from it and some damage.
I would say do not have this outdated procedure. Have a directed biopsy through the perieniam.
lee56659
Posted
stan98754 lee56659
Posted
Median lobe if really big and outside of standard prostate shape is big problem and PAE is not effective. Pls see picture of the "Beast" . Its working like " pressure valve"
stan98754
Posted
tom86211 stan98754
Posted
Stan,
My urologist doesn't believe the MRI scan will show us why my flow is weak - why I am being squeezed. I find this hard to believe. He said the cystoscope is the only way to tell. What do you think?
Tom
stan98754 tom86211
Posted
I sent you PM , pls confirm the receipt of it . Stan