Anyone have BPH?

[AUG168]

I was diagnosed with BPH about 8 months ago. I leak urine and use a pad, occasionally a pull-up if my OAB is active.

It seems like I’m leaking more, especially at night.I would prefer not to wear a pull up at night but I’m afraid of wetting the bed.

Has you incontinence gotten worse over time? Please share your experiences.

 

[Tetra]

Wait, there are people who don’t have it ?
Yup am in my 50’s but have had it since my 20’s , much of BPH is what are your symptoms ? How does it effect you , and management ? I am incontinent/ retention and half a million other things so for years I have taken .8 Tamulosin to shrink my prostate and relax my bladder neck , I went off it and for awhile , I got hit by truck last year since I am already a quad in wheelchair my word on I don’t hurt or I do hurt isn’t reliable so literally spent hours in CT scan because literally head to toe had to be looked at , the only really wrong things was broken ribs ,road rash and basicly get a load of that guys prostate it’s giant , so back on meds again. I constantly leak but don’t empty my bladder ,I am catheterized 5 X’s a day to prevent 1 lots of stale urine 2 high resting pressure that will screw up your other functioning organs 3 one void diaper destruction my bladder can hold as much as 1000 MLS and decide to release , with BPH sometimes even with special catheters you can’t pee andcyou can’t get a catheter in , this becomes an emergency and I’ll have five urology nurses trying everything from a pediatric 12 FR to a totem pole 30 FR and whatever works is then staying in for 2 weeks and my prostate can chill till my urologist does a cystoscopy and decides is my urethra still compromised by prostate if so he sinks a new cath and we wait another 2 weeks to be rescoped or do we give him back to his aide for normal care diapers, drugs and intermittent catheters until a new flare up happens , now I am admittedly a rolling pre existing condition with lots of “moving parts” ( a little self deprecating humor ) that become life threading emergency’s quickly and dramaticly . I well known to scare doctors if I show up rolling in my chair somebody screwed up , if I show up in an ambulance panic ! The only way I “rate” using an ambulance is because someone called one and I can’t say no because I am unconscious but with all that’s wrong with me you better be super doc mixed with lieutenant Columbo because I am the ahole who invented “critical care house party “I was in a paramedic ambulance unconscious with 2 paramedics treating me and became so unstable I needed an additional paramedic intercept to keep me alive literally 1 mile from shock trauma , I live exactly 3.7 miles from my front door to the hospital E.D so I went from bad to nighmare in 2.7 miles lights and siren . I am honored by my brothers and sisters persistence at not letting me go home to God a minute sooner than I have to , but do I think I am worth this much fuss , no !it’s humbling to know people care about me that much , they also will tell me anything I ask EXCEPT who saved me this time , the union pulled my medical retirement papers on request of my doctor in 04 .

as I said before TMI it’s very individualized on your health issues and how you and your doctor want to manage it depending on your overall health , with me almost everything is agressively managed even during the alternate pandemic reality we currently enjoy .

 

[mickdl]

Wait, there are people who don’t have it ?

ROTFL…

Yes - this is really very common in men - probably about 40% of those over 50 have this condition. However, this does not mean that all of them have symptoms.

Basically, there are three phases of BPH:

In the first, you don't notice much - except that you have to go out more often at night and your urine stream is not as strong.

In the second phase, you may experience urinary retention, higher residual urine and other LUTS effects.

Tetra has already described the third phase. This ends - if not operated on first - with bladder hypertrophy and overflow incontinence.

The indication for surgery is urinary retention. The aim is always to protect the kidneys. During surgery, the prostate is scraped out - unfortunately, even with the most modern methods such as green laser or Davici, in some cases (5 - 10%) this leads to subsequent stress incontinence and / or impotence.

In BPH, urge problems can also occur in the first two phases. The reason for this is that the prostate presses on the lower bladder nerves. First approach is actually always tamsulusin. If you are lucky, the tamsulusin will make the prostate not press so hard on the lower bladder nerves and the urge problem will be reduced. If not, treatment is the same as for "normal" urge incontinence - with a higher risk of urinary retention with drug treatment. This is because as the obstruction progresses, the bladder has to exert more and more force against the resistance. If it is then dampened with botox, for example, it may no longer be able to do this and ISK is the result.

There is no real therapy against BPH as far as I know. The "standard treatment" is "controlled waiting". This means that the doctor regularly checks the residual urine with ultrasound and if it becomes too much or other LUTS occur, they try to mitigate the effect. As far as I know, there is no drug that _proven_ to reduce the size of the prostate again.

 

[ltaluv]

Wait, there are people who don’t have it ?

Sure. Women.

I've read that every man who lives long enough will eventually get BPH. In my case, my new urologist has started talking about whether it's time for surgery. According to him, my prostate is enlarged but "nothing special" (his words - there went my self esteem!), but it's adding to my interstitial cystitis/OAB symptoms so it might be time to get it worked on.

 

[Tetra]

“Nothing special” enlargement is on the polar opposite of surgery ,
Watchfull waiting DRE pampers and pills
Vs
Traumatic , invasive , in exact with serious potential for adverse outcomes the 2 major one Icntinence both temporary and permanent and nerve injury ( even with “nerve sparing surgeries”) erectile dysfunction and loss of sexual function.pain & healing time

Just a helpfull rule of thumb all surgery is sold to patients as glamourous “ one & done” successful outcome , the reality most patients do not experience those outcomes typically they end up buying the surgeons new summer house .
Never let a doctor sell you on surgery as anything but a last effort effort when all other less invasive and cheaper alternatives have tried and failed to resolve symptoms that distress you & are incompatabile or severely interfere with your quality of life .

 

[BWAron]

“Nothing special” enlargement is on the polar opposite of surgery ,
Watchfull waiting DRE pampers and pills
Vs
Traumatic , invasive , in exact with serious potential for adverse outcomes the 2 major one Icntinence both temporary and permanent and nerve injury ( even with “nerve sparing surgeries”) erectile dysfunction and loss of sexual function.pain & healing time

Just a helpfull rule of thumb all surgery is sold to patients as glamourous “ one & done” successful outcome , the reality most patients do not experience those outcomes typically they end up buying the surgeons new summer house .
Never let a doctor sell you on surgery as anything but a last effort effort when all other less invasive and cheaper alternatives have tried and failed to resolve symptoms that distress you & are incompatabile or severely interfere with your quality of life .

My doctor was very up front about how surgery MAY help and may NOT help. So we decided to hold off as long as possble for surgery and meds, and just use protection

 

[mickdl]

Never let a doctor sell you on surgery as anything but a last effort effort when all other less invasive and cheaper alternatives have tried and failed to resolve symptoms that distress you & are incompatabile or severely interfere with your quality of life .

I think that's exactly how it is... If you can't pee at all and ISC doesn't work for whatever reason (e.g. urethral obstruction) then you can think about surgery. In all other cases it is probably better to wait until there is no other way.

@Italuv - if Botox still works for you without ISC, I don't think I would do anything at first. It is always the question how much residual urine is in the bladder - this can be an issue with IC, because it additionally irritates the bladder wall and also favors bladder infections - but you probably have that in mind anyway ;-).

 

[daylight]

@YouAll, I want to think the context is prostate related regarding surgery. It may come to a point where if surgery is needed, you many not be strong enough to handle it. Prevention vs Reaction. Just something to keep in mind.

And. If your arm is dangerously dangling by a few tendons, it is not a mere flesh wound and will not get better.

 

[passion4life]

My doctor was very up front about how surgery MAY help and may NOT help. So we decided to hold off as long as possble for surgery and meds, and just use protection

I definitely opt for protection. Both the drugs and surgery options have many negatives that at 75 I choose not to deal with. Be careful. Although there are many wonderful doctors, there are also many that see surgery as a cash opportunity. No thanks

 

[rbm]

I was diagnosed with BPH about 8 months ago. I leak urine and use a pad, occasionally a pull-up if my OAB is active.

It seems like I’m leaking more, especially at night.I would prefer not to wear a pull up at night but I’m afraid of wetting the bed.

Has you incontinence gotten worse over time? Please share your experiences.

have it for awhile now, at first it would drip a little when done. was always getting wet undies. started using pads when going out, but bulky and a pain in the as to wear. it started getting worse. dr gave me finasteride and rapaflowas ok bit getting worsestill on the meds bit now peeong about every hour to 2 hours and have a hard time finishing. I have to stand there and squeeze and shake it. then I need to wipe with tp because the end gets so wet. tried depends , dont like them. now I wear womens bladder control panties full time

 

[ltaluv]

I think that's exactly how it is... If you can't pee at all and ISC doesn't work for whatever reason (e.g. urethral obstruction) then you can think about surgery. In all other cases it is probably better to wait until there is no other way.

@Italuv - if Botox still works for you without ISC, I don't think I would do anything at first. It is always the question how much residual urine is in the bladder - this can be an issue with IC, because it additionally irritates the bladder wall and also favors bladder infections - but you probably have that in mind anyway ;-).

I wish Botox worked for me without ISC. As it happens, the most recent round of Botox seems to have fully kicked in after a week and a half - I measured right at 500 ml retained this morning. Good times.

OTOH, Botox controls the pain, so I'll put up with the ISC as the price for getting relief from my interstitial cystitis. That's a whole separate problem from my BPH.

We'll see what happens with surgery. I'm not too keen on it just yet, but there are a number of alternatives to try before I sign up for several months of routine incontinence as seems to be common with prostate surgery.

 

[slimjiminy]

Yep. I'm on BPH medication recently because of mild swelling of prostate and to help with the flow. Tamsulosin gives me a mild headache, which I hate. Drinking more liquid seems to help but causes other issues. I just hope I don't grow breasts. If I need a "bro" (Seinfeld), then I quit!

 

[rbm]

Yep. I'm on BPH medication recently because of mild swelling of prostate and to help with the flow. Tamsulosin gives me a mild headache, which I hate. Drinking more liquid seems to help but causes other issues. I just hope I don't grow breasts. If I need a "bro" (Seinfeld), then I quit!

yes I have had it for awhile. finasteride and rapaflo doesnt really help. nothing wrong with breasts. I have them 46Cbras fulltime and wear womens bladder control panties fulltime . better than pads or diapers

 

[Diaperloverj]

I noticed peeing was taking longer and longer. And there was more and more dribbling when I was supposedly finished. This was very noticeable when I was out drinking. It seemed to be getting worse over a year or so. Then one afternoon I stopped at the bar and had four large glasses of beer. At home, I got a normal urge to pee but when I did, very little came out. And then in a short time I got the urge to go again. Same result. I was not emptying my bladder. At bed time, I pulled on a diaper and the plan was to just pee when I got the urge. Even if it was every 10 minutes. But, I was not able to pee at all. not a drop. Then things got painful. I really needed to pee but nothing would come out. I then waited way to long before deciding I needed to get to the emergency room. The half hour drive and the half hour answering questions in the ER were excruciatingly painful. Finally Nurse Ratchet shoved a gravel impregnated garden hose into my bladder, and drained out 2000+ ML of pee. Later than night I went home with the catheter in me and rested for three days, but the pain didn't subside. It took two weeks for my bladder to stop hurting. I thought maybe it was a stone or some other blockage that caused it all, but when I went to my doctor, he diagnosed BPH. There are pills for that he assured me and started me on Tamsulosin.

I looked everything up on the internet, wondering what I would do if it happened again. It was really painful. I love road trips, what if I was in the middle of no where and this happened. Well, I discovered other people had experience with this and had it figured out. I needed to learn to self catheterize myself. I thought of the catheter insertion in the hospital and wondered how I could do possibly do that to myself. Long story shortened, I did learn how to do it and when done correctly, it is virtually pain free and very easy.

Now I wear pads in my undies 24/7 to deal with the dribbles after peeing and I don't really mind that at all. I do love to soak a diaper after all. I actually enjoy dribbling most of the time. Sometimes doing it intentionally. And putting a catheter in and then putting a diaper on is also fun. The pee just comes out by itself with no control.

I know, I'm a weirdo. LOL

 

[Tetra]

When I was started on Tamulosin , I was in the hospital and a nurse came in all happy and friendly “ Doctor has started you on a new med for your prostate “ oh what’s it called ?” “Tamoxifen “ I am like I don’t think that my prostate and breast cancer could co habitate .

 

[Pino]

I am 46 now and my prostate is "small and perfect to touch", the cystoscopy showed it is very long, but small in diameter, so very difficult to get into the bladder with any tool or even a catheter.

Well, i am incontinent due to neurological damage, no reason to party.