You wouldn’t be the first person to take urination for granted. But that all changes once you start feeling the first symptoms of an enlarged prostate, especially if it means you have trouble peeing. Maybe you feel like you’re not able to fully empty your bladder or you begin to lose control of when (and how much) you urinate.

Urolift is a non-surgical solution to an enlarged prostate that does not trim or remove the prostate. Instead, Urolift simply nudges the enlarged organ out of the way.

What is Urolift?

The Urolift procedure is designed to treat an enlarged prostate–a medical condition known as Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH). This condition, fairly common in men as they age, can interfere with regular urination by putting pressure on and closing up the urethra.

Traditional treatments for BPH typically medication or surgery. However, Urolift is designed to accomplish the same outcome in a less invasive and incisionless way.

During a Urolift procedure, your urologist will insert a small tube–called a Urolift Delivery Device–through your urethra and up to your prostate. The device will then deploy a series of permanent implants. These implants push the prostate out of the way, ensuring that the urethra stays open and normal urinary function can resume. Once the implants are in place, the delivery device is removed and the patient can begin recovery.

What Are the Benefits of Urolift?

There are several significant benefits that Urolift procedures offer over either surgery or medication. Those benefits include the following:

• Because Urolift is non invasive, it can be accomplished in an outpatient surgery setting. This means that patients can return home the same day as the procedure.
• The procedure itself is usually accomplished in roughly an hour or so, making for a relatively expedient patient experience.
• For most patients, there’s no need to leave a catheter in place during the recovery. This makes patients significantly more comfortable.
• The traditional process of trimming the prostate can sometimes create long lasting sexual dysfunction. Because Urolift does not make any incisions, the risk of this specific type of dysfunction is near zero. Patients have reported no erectile or ejaculatory dysfunction due to Urolift.
• Patients can experience fast alleviation of symptoms. For most patients, discomfort relief often manifests within two weeks of the Urolift procedure.

Urolift can be performed at the Iowa City Ambulatory Surgery Center as an outpatient surgery. If you think you’d be a good fit for this procedure at the Iowa City ASC, contact your doctor about a referral.

Urolift is not for everyone. You should talk to your urologist about possible risks associated with Urolift, including infection or complications.

Benefits of Outpatient Surgery

Urolift is performed at the Iowa City Ambulatory Surgery Center as an outpatient surgery procedure. This means that patients come in, have their procedure performed, and go home the same day. An outpatient approach has significant benefits for some patients, include:

• The Comforts of Home: Patients get to recover from the procedure in the comfort of their own home.
• Decreased chance for crossover infection: Because ASCs have a lower patient population than hospitals, there’s a smaller chance that you’ll pick up a bug from another person while you’re there.
• Lower cost: In general, outpatient procedures have a much lower associated cost than inpatient procedures performed at a hospital. Most patients save money by choosing an ASC.
• Familiarity with staff: When you have your procedure performed at the Iowa City Ambulatory Surgery Center, you’ll be interacting with doctors, nurses, and staff that are familiar.
• Highly trained staff: At the Iowa City ASC, our staff has extensive training and expertise. Whether you need local or general anesthesia, you’ll be in the best hands possible during your procedure!

The Iowa City Ambulatory Surgery Center has access to the latest innovations and treatments, Urolift included! If you want to know more about having your procedure performed here, talk to your doctor about a referral.

Who is Urolift For?

In general, Urolift is recommended for men over the age of 45 or 50. Medication is often the first intervention that urologists will use when attempting to treat an enlarged prostate. However, if medication does not work–or if the medication produces unwanted or uncomfortable side effects–then the deployment of Urolift may be optimal.

Urolift is also designed to be an alternative to surgical BPH therapies. You may be a good fit for Urolift is you:

• Experience a urinary stream that starts and stops
• Have trouble experiencing the sensation that your bladder has successfully emptied
• Experience a slow or weak urinary stream
• Experience an urgent need to urinate or incontinence
• Urinate multiple times per day (including at night)

If you’re experiencing these symptoms, it’s worth talking to your urologist about your prostate health and urology surgery. If an overly large prostate is discovered, you can then discuss Urolift as a possible treatment.

To find out if you’re a good fit for Urolift at the Iowa City ASC, talk to your doctor about a referral. That way you can stop worrying about how and when you’ll be–and go back to enjoying your life.