Laser Prostate Surgery: cost, duration and step by step

• Laser Prostate Surgery reduces complications such as retrograde ejaculation, associated more with open prostate surgeries.

• The best-known lasers to perform prostate surgery are holmium laser, thulium laser and greenlight laser.
• Operarme includes all the necessary in the fixed cost of laser prostate surgery so the process is as safe and comfortable as possible.

Prostate surgery has the main goal to relieve the obstruction caused by an overgrowth of the prostate. Through this intervention, pain in the urethra is alleviated and also the discomforting symptoms associated with prostate problems.

This growth known as benign hyperplasia of the prostate is very common in men over 65 years old.

Generally, patients end up having surgical treatment when any medication is no longer responding to the symptoms.

Laser technique achieves elimination of the prostatic adenoma, with the advantage of being a minimally invasive surgery. Therefore laser prostate surgery reduces bleeding, recovery time, and the rate of medical complications associated with sexual function, compared to open surgery.

Laser prostate surgery is an intervention that treats benign hyperplasia prostatic, that is, the enlargement of the size of the prostate. In order to perform this procedure, the specialist will take the following steps:

• First, the specialist will administer a general anaesthetic so that you do not feel any discomfort during the procedure.
• Once it has taken effect, the cystoscope and the laser fibre are inserted through the urethra, which has previously been dilated.
• Depending on the laser chosen, the technique may involve vaporisation, enucleation or vapo-resection, among others.
• Once all the prostate tissue has been removed, all the instruments are removed and a probe is left in place to eliminate any remains that may have been left inside.

When performing prostate surgery, we can differentiate different laser techniques that we’ll mention below:

Holmium Laser

Prostate surgery with Holmium Laser has the main advantage of reducing any post-surgery medical complications to the minimum.

Holmium Laser prostate surgery is indicated for all prostate sizes.

Depending on the characterics of the patient to be treated, holmium laser surgery will be performed through prostatic enucleation or vaporisation.

In Laser Holmium surgery through prostatic enucleation, the prostatic adenoma is separated from the prostatic capsule and the areas with bleeding are cauterised. 

During the Laser Holmium surgery via Vaporisation, the specialist makes precise cuts for the removal of the tissue, allowing for a reduction in intraoperative bleeding. However, this technique is only indicated for prostates weighing no more than 50 grams.

Thulium Laser

Prostate surgery with Thulium Laser is recommended for any prostate size. In the same way as Holmium laser, prostate surgery with Thulium laser can be performed through two techniques: vaporisation and vapour-resection.

In the thulium laser surgery through vaporisation technique, the specialist performs the evaporation of the prostate tissue by heating it.

The intracellular water reaches up to 100 degrees, minimising bleeding and creating a haemostatic effect.

In the case of vapour-resection technique, the same steps of the previous technique are followed, but combining them with the resection of the tissue by means of a laser beam. Although this technique is very effective for prostates of medium-large size, it will be the specialist who indicates the patient the best laser for his case.

In some cases of excessively large sizes, it may be advisable to use the Holmium Laser.

Greenlight Laser

Greenlight laser prostate surgery is indicated for prostates of no more than 50 cc. However, in some cases it can be performed on larger prostates by prostatic enucleation.

Regarding the technique to be performed in Greenlight laser surgery, it is mainly performed through tissue vaporisation and cauterisation of the surrounding tissues.

This approach doesn’t only reduce bleeding, but also reduces the recovery time in comparison to conservative approaches.

Greenlight laser technique also reduces post-surgery compilation to 0,1%.

Laser prostate surgery is a technological breakthrough in the field of urology and is a good alternative to conventional prostate treatment.

Laser surgery is a minimally invasive option in which post-surgery complications are reduced, but keeps the effectiveness of the surgical treatment.

Laser prostate surgery takes 30 - 45 minutes, depending on the technique used.

Besides the laser and the technique performed in the surgery, the patient’s size of the prostate also influences the time of the intervention.

Moreover, the need for admission will be greater or lesser depending on the laser chosen, the technique used and the prostatic enlargement of the patient.

In the cases of Holmium and Thulium laser techniques, the patient will only need to stay admitted for 1 day, or even he may be discharged on the same day of the surgery.

In the case of Greenlight laser technique, the admission may be up to 2 days.

In any of these cases, the surgeon will always be the one to determine the duration of hospital admission, and the discharge day.

Laser prostate surgery is the best treatment for treating Benign Hyperplasia of the Prostate (BHP). Laser is the most advanced technique to treat this disease, since it reduces time of surgery, admission and recovery.

If you'd like to find out more about post-surgery or recovery time after a Laser Prostate intervention, you can learn more in this article on the recovery process.

Nowadays, there are several laser techniques to perform prostate surgery, which will imply a different cost depending on the technique:

• Holmium Laser prostate surgery cost is 7.590 €
• Thulium Laser prostate surgery cost is 7.190€
• Green Laser prostate surgery cost is 7.290 €

At Operarme we include all the elements and services in the fixed price so that the process is as comfortable and safe as possible for the patient:

• Preoperative study
• Booking and use of operating theatre, instruments and surgical equipment
• Stay in a private room with a spare bed for your companion
• Food and clothing service for the patient
• Hygiene and care products for the patient
• Post-operative visit 
• Free transfer service*, both the day of admission and the day of discharge (*read the conditions here)
• Medical complications insurance, in case it is necessary to increase the number of days of hospitalisation, or perform a reintervention in the 30 days following the surgery

If you have a diagnosis on prostate issues, and you have tests and medical reports from your specialist, do not hesitate to make an appointment with one of our urologists to assess your case and seek the best surgical treatment for your prostate problem.