Lasers for Benign Prostatic Obstruction: And the Winner Is …

The past three decades have witnessed continuing evolution and diversification of laser technologies used for the surgical treatment of benign prostatic obstruction (BPO). These advances resulted from a better understanding of laser-tissue interactions, technical refinements, and increasing clinical experience. To date, holmium and thulium lasers are most commonly used in BPO surgery owing to their intrinsic characteristics, such as strong absorption in water and minimal tissue penetration. These laser types have also been widely assessed in clinical studies that provided strong evidence for their efficiency. This mini review describes current trends for laser applications in the treatment of BPO. PATIENT SUMMARY: Our mini review describes the different types of lasers used to remove prostate tissue in patients with a benign enlarged prostate gland that is obstructing urine flow. We highlight the advantages and disadvantages of the different techniques.