Medpedia

Many treatments for prostatitis are associated with short-duration symptomatic effect. How long does the effect of surgery last?

Treatment choice is driven by the degree to which a treatment reduces symptom severity. Given that many treatment, e.g. massage, can confer transient relief, patients considering treatments of any kind need to also consider the durability of treatment.

As described by individual patients, laparoscopic prostatectomy has completely eliminated prostatitis symptoms. How long can the effect endure?

The durability of the therapeutic effect of laparoscopic prostatectomy on prostatitis symptoms is not well characterized. However, individual reports show that this effect can last beyond 2 years. One should note that few prostatitis treatments have been in any way measured 2 years after initiation. As such, these reports of a therapeutic effect with surgery are among the longest measures of any treatment for prostatitis.

Here are relatively long-term individual reports of the effect of surgery on prostatitis symptoms:

1) 18 months after surgery

2) 24 months after surgery

3) 30 months after surgery  (video by David Radford; upper right video)

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