As men age, most suffer from benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), commonly known as an enlarged prostate. According to experts, your prostate is a small gland that helps make semen and is found just below the bladder. While this non-cancerous enlargement of the prostate gland usually occurs in men over the age of 50, it does cause some discomfort.

BPH causes urinary problems such as frequent and urgent urge to urinate, pain and difficulty and incomplete urination, pain after ejaculation, and blood in the urine. Many of these, if not treated on time, can lead to complications like prostate cancer and infection. “This is due to the pressure of the enlarged prostate gland on the urethra, causing urine to flow out of the bladder. Generally, a prostate gland of more than 80 grams is considered to be BPH,” Dr Sridhar Reddy Baddam, Senior Consultant Vascular and Oncointerventions, told Times Now.

According to Dr. Baddam, even though the actual cause of prostate enlargement is unknown, it may be due to changes in the balance of sex hormones with age.

Easy, non-invasive way to treat BPH

Prostate artery embolization is a minimally invasive non-surgical angiogram technique – which helps treat an enlarged prostate and the urinary symptoms it causes. While PAE isn’t the only treatment, Dr. Baddam says it can be done easily by simply inserting a catheter through your wrist. This procedure also gives the most successful results with the least number of complications.

“In PAE, a magic drug – known as particles – is injected directly into the prostate artery, causing the enlarged prostate to shrink over a few weeks, relieving the contraction on the urethra and allowing the free flow of urine. There is convenience in flow,” Dr. Baddam said.

How is prostatic artery embolization performed?

According to experts, PAE is performed by an interventional radiologist – a doctor who uses X-rays and other imaging techniques to see inside the body and treat conditions without surgery. Some of the stages at which the surgery is performed include:

• A Foley catheter is inserted into your urethra and placed in your bladder to provide a reference point for the surrounding anatomy.
• PAE is done through a small catheter inserted into an artery in your wrist or groin. The catheter is guided only into the vessels that supply blood to your prostate.
• An arteriogram – an X-ray in which dye is injected into the blood vessels to map the blood vessels that nourish your prostate.
• Small round particles are injected through the catheter and into the blood vessels that feed your prostate to reduce its blood supply.
• Repeating the above steps, the catheter is moved to treat the other side of your prostate.
• After the procedure is completed – the prostate begins to shrink, symptoms are relieved and improve, usually within a few days of the procedure.

What is Advantages of PAE compared to normal surgery,

According to Dr. Baddam, some of the reasons why PAE is better are:

• There are no blades, cuts, sutures or scar techniques involved
• Unlike other traditional surgeries, there will be no bleeding or long hospital stay.
• PAE ensures faster recovery and shorter hospitalization
• It helps in keeping sexual activity safe
• This procedure reduces urinary infections and complications

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