Balloon dilatation of prostate: keys to sustained favorable results

Seventy-seven patients with small prostates (less than 40 g) and significant obstructive symptomatology were treated using balloon dilatation of the prostate (BDP) with a sized-to-fit intra-prostatic balloon. Eighty-seven percent of the patients experienced a 50 percent or greater decrease in symptom score at longest follow-up (12.0 months, average: 3-24 months, range). Forty-nine percent of the patients had a 50 percent or greater improvement in peak uroflow. An anterior commissurotomy through the fibromuscular stroma was consistently found and is the hallmark of a technical and therapeutic success. No cases of incontinence, retrograde ejaculation, or impotence developed. When properly performed, BDP has a place in the spectrum of BPH treatment alternatives.