Definition: An enlarged prostate (benign prostatic hyperplasia) may cause urinary issues. Symptoms include difficulty initiating or maintaining a stream, difficulty emptying bladder, or frequent urination which is especially noticeable at night.
Treatment: Interventional radiology offers a safe and effective alternative to surgery where a small catheter is used to select the arteries supplying the prostate and these arteries are blocked with microscopic beads. This causes the prostate to reduce in size which greatly reduces symptoms. Prostate artery embolization has a much lower risk of incontinence or sexual dysfunction when compared to the surgical alternative transurethral resection of prostate (TURP). Prostate artery embolization is an outpatient procedure not requiring a hospital stay.
Definition: Varicoceles are abnormally dilated veins in the scrotum. These are much more common on the left but may occur on both sides of the scrotum. Varicoceles can lead to severe chronic pain and have been known to cause infertility.
Treatment: The varicoceles may be treated by blocking the abnormal veins supplying the varicoceles. This has been shown to be safe and effective alternative to surgical varicocelectomy. It has also been shown to be effective when surgery fails to resolve symptoms. The entire treatment is performed through a small catheter in the vein. The procedure typically takes less than 1 hour to perform and does not require a hospital stay.
