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Medication Discontinuation Following Transurethral Prostatectomy: an Unrecognized Effectiveness Measure?

  • Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (K McVary, Section Editor)
  • Published:
Current Urology Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

Freedom from medication is a common goal for patients undergoing surgical treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)/lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). Knowing medication discontinuation rates following various forms of transurethral prostatectomy may aid patient counseling and assessing the comparative effectiveness of different approaches. This review examined discontinuation rates of BPH/LUTS medications following transurethral prostatectomy.

Recent Findings

Rates of BPH/LUTS medication use after transurethral resection of the prostate varied from 15% to 55%, and discontinuation rates were 54–95% across medications and follow-up periods. For laser prostatectomy, approximately 18% of patients continued medications postoperatively and discontinuation rates ranged from 53% to 75%. Minimal data on holmium laser enucleation existed. For reference, medication discontinuation rates after transurethral needle ablation or microwave therapy were only 15–28%.

Summary

No recommendations or best practices inform the use of medical therapy following BPH surgery. Rates of BPH/LUTS medication use following transurethral prostatectomy are considerable.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Urology, Glickman Urological and Kidney Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Mail Stop Q10-1, 9500 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH, 44195, USA

    Rebecca A. Campbell & Bradley C. Gill

  2. Department of Urology, Cleveland Lerner College of Medicine, Education Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Bradley C. Gill

  3. Section of Urology, Surgical Service, Cleveland Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Bradley C. Gill

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  1. Rebecca A. Campbell
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Correspondence to Bradley C. Gill.

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Conflict of Interest

The authors have no pertinent conflicts of interest related to the subject matter presented in this review. While Dr. Gill has served as a consultant for Boston Scientific, it is for unrelated clinical topics and technologies.

Human and Animal Rights

The research presented in this article is comprised of a literature review and does not involve the use of live human or animal subjects. However, any studies cited that were performed by the authors and involved human or animal subjects were performed in accordance with all applicable ethical standards, including the Helsinki declaration and its amendments, institutional/national research committee standards, and international/national/institutional guidelines.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

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Campbell, R.A., Gill, B.C. Medication Discontinuation Following Transurethral Prostatectomy: an Unrecognized Effectiveness Measure?. Curr Urol Rep 21, 61 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11934-020-01015-9

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