Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia Research Paper

Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

Benign prostatic hyperplasia is known as a noncancerous overdevelopment of the prostate; it is also called an enlarged prostate. The abbreviation for benign prostatic hyperplasia is, “BPH.” Another term for benign prostatic hyperplasia is benign prostatic hypertrophy but is most commonly known as benign prostatic hyperplasia.

Major signs and symptoms include: Frequent or urgent need to urinate increased frequency of urination at night (nocturia), difficulty starting urination, Weak urine stream or a stream that stops and starts, dribbling at the end of urination (thin and slow stream during urination), inability to completely empty the bladder (Mayo Clinic). There can also be pain during urination and inability

to start a urine stream. In some cases, there can be blood in the urine and a urinary tract infection involved with benign prostatic hyperplasia. Though the size of the prostate does not show the severity of a symptom, people with only slight enlargement could have symptoms, while others with a very enlarged prostate can sometimes have no symptoms at all.
The cause of benign prostatic hyperplasia is not well understood, but benign prostatic hyperplasia is most closely related to age. Another possible cause can be a change in sex hormones that causes to prostate to become enlarged. The prostate gland is located beneath your bladder. The tube that transports urine from the bladder out of your penis (urethra) passes through the center of the prostate. When the prostate enlarges, it begins to block urine flow which causes difficulty urinating or a slow urine stream.
To diagnose a patient with benign prostatic hyperplasia, a health care provider can use a wide variety of tests to diagnose a patient with benign prostatic hyperplasia. Most commonly, a digital rectal exam, or DRE, would be done. Other procedures include: Urinalysis (urine test), PSA blood test to screen for prostate cancer, urinary blood test to screen for bladder cancer, post-void residual volume (PVR) to measure urine left in the bladder after urinating, uroflowmetry to measure how fast urine flows, cystoscopy to look at the urethra or bladder with a scope, urodynamic pressure to test pressure in the bladder during urination, and ultrasound of the prostate.(Urology Care Foundation)
Before treatment, key factors that a health care provider would view would be the size of the prostate, growth of prostate from original size, discomfort a patient would feel, and overall health. Treatment that is most commonly used for benign prostatic hyperplasia is medication that shrinks the prostate or lifestyle changes (changes in diet). In severe or more fatal cases surgery may be needed. A patient does not need to be treated if they are not having problems with day to day life.
Medication is the most commonly used treatment to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia with moderate symptoms of enlargement.

The first type of medication called “Alpha blockers”, are used to relax the muscles in the prostate to make it easier to urinate. Alpha Blockers are made out of (Uroxatral), doxazosin (Cardura), Tamsulosin (Flomax) and silodosin (Mayo Clinic). The dosage for alpha blockers is a maximum of ten milligrams a day. It is also taken once a day with food, so it is absorbed faster. Some of the side effects that may happen are dizziness and a condition called retrograde ejaculation. Another medication that is used is called 5-alpha reductase inhibitors. This medication works by stopping hormonal changes, which cause the prostate to enlarge. This medication is made with finasteride (Proscar) and Dutasteride (Avodart). However, this medication takes up to six months before it begins to take any effect. The dosage for 5-alpha reductase inhibitors is five milligrams orally once a day. This medication also has a side effect, which is retrograde ejaculation. Out of the two medications, Alpha Blockers would be more effective because it does not take six months to take effect.

Benign prostatic hyperplasia is a disease that can only occur in males. There is a larger chance of someone getting the disease increases as a person gets old. The chance for someone in their thirties is ten percent, twenty percent for someone in their forties, sixty percent for men is their sixties,

and eighty plus for men in their seventies.
Ultimately, benign prostatic hyperplasia, which is an overdevelopment of the prostate, is a disease that will most likely impact most males. With it able to impact so many, men should stay weary and get checkups regularly once they are about forty.

Work Cited
“Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH).” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 13 Dec. 2017, www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/benign-prostatic-hyperplasia/symptoms-causes/syc-20370087
“Prostate Enlargement (Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia).” National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1 Sept. 2014, www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/urologic-diseases/prostate-problems/prostate-enlargement-benign-prostatic-hyperplasia
Urology Care Foundation - What Causes BPH?, www.urologyhealth.org/urologic-conditions/benign-prostatic-hyperplasia-(bph)/causes