Purpose: To compare the performance of voluminous benign prostatic hyperplasia patients who have received laparoscopic simple prostatectomy (LSP) with the patients who have received bipolar transurethral resection of the prostate (B-TURP) in their perioperative and 3-year follow-up period.
Methods: Ninety patients with prostate volumes >80 mL (range 80-130 mL) were randomly assigned to either LSP or B-TURP surgery type. The patients were followed up at 1, 3, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months postoperatively. Perioperative and follow-up characteristics were then recorded and compared.
Results: More blood loss, greater resected adenoma volume, and shorter catheterization duration were recorded in LSP group than that of B-TURP group (140.1±81.5 vs 93.1±54.0 mL; 65.3±13.8 vs 49.0±12.7 mL; 3.3±1.2 vs 3.8±1.0 days; p<0.05). None of the patients in LSP group reported complications out of 30 days, while 1 case of urethral stricture, 36 cases of retrograde ejaculation, 1 case of bladder neck contracture, and 2 cases of recurrence were recorded in B-TURP group. At 1, 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively, there were no significant differences in terms of postvoid residual urine volume, maximal urinary flow rate (Qmax), and International Prostate Symptom Score between the two groups (p>0.05). In contrast, the differences became significant at 24 and 36 months (p<0.05).
Conclusions: Compared with B-TURP, LSP with Madigan technique is accompanied by less residual adenoma, shorter catheterization time, and more blood loss. Further, the risk of late complications is lower with LSP and, in terms of functional outcomes, LSP appears to be better than B-TURP beyond 2 years.