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INDIGO LASER
The indigo laser is a wonderful technique which takes
approximately 30 minutes. It can be done under purely local anesthesia. This
technique is similar to the microwave therapy in that a fiber which has an
indigo laser tip is placed into the prostate tissue and heat is applied to
the prostate.
The enlarged or blocking tissue then is caused to shrink over the course of
time allowing the channel to open more widely and have the flow improve. This
technique was made possible by Johnson & Johnson and as such, has had a
great long term follow-up with good results. The exciting thing about both of
these new techniques is they are both outpatient, they both require minimal,
if any, anesthesia, and both result in nearly immediate change in the urinary
symptornatology. The only drawback to these procedures are not the risk of
complications, but rather the fact that a catheter (or tube) does need to be
kept in bladder for approximately three to five days after the procedure
because before the shrinkage, there is swelling. However, our results of
using these techniques over the past few years shows them to be excitingly
successful and very well accepted and tolerated by our patients.
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