Lasers and the prostate

Ever since its introduction in 1960, Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation, in short: LASER has amplified and stimulated the hopes and imagination of patients and doctors alike. Laser even has a symbolic power that expands far beyond the walls of operation theatres. It holds a promise for the future, for technological progress and – a higher quality of treatment. Patients are not only satisfied, they are proud of being treated by laser. It means status to them and they will tell their friends about it. For doctors: let’s face it, doing that Jedi knightthing in the OR is kind of cool. Apart from that nimbus, where do we stand today, medically speaking? During the past ten years, the development of new lasers has had a substantial impact upon the landscape of surgical treatment of benign prostatic obstruction. We have seen the evolution of 60, 80, 120 and 180 W KTP lasers, Holmium laser enucleation, Thulium laser vaporesection, Thulium laser enucleation and Diode laser evaporation and enucleation to name a few. Does technological advance translate into better treatment results? It depends. From a strict functional point of view, there does not appear to be much difLasers and the prostate