Transvesical prostatectomy in Tikur Anbessa Hospital, Addis Ababa

This is a retrospective study of a hundred and thirty patients with benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH) treated at the Tikur Anbessa Hospital with suprapubic transvesical prostatectomy (STVP) from September 1984 to August 1988. The commonest presenting complaints were frequency of micturition noted in 113 (87%) patients and acute urinary retention in 102 (79%). The prostate was enlarged in all patients with an average weight of 70.0 gm in the 60 specimen weighed. Forty (31%) patients received two units of blood each. Sixty five (50%) developed immediate post operative complications and four patients died during the first post operative week giving a mortality rate of 3.0%. The duration of postoperative hospital stay was two to three weeks. It is concluded that transvesical prostatectomy is satisfactory modality of treatment for BPH in situations where facilities for transurethral prostatectomy (TUR) are not available as STVP can be accomplished with an acceptable morbidity and mortality.