RG Stone And Super Speciality Hospital, India’s only chain of super speciality hospitals for advanced urology and laparoscopic surgeries, at Model Town, Ludhiana, announced the success of the operations on two patients for their disease, prostate enlargement or benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) leading to blockage of the urinary passage. This is because both the patients were unsuitable candidates for surgery under previous techniques for the treatment of BPH. One of the patients, Mr. Sohan Singh, is 90 years old and is anemic. The second patient, Dr. HS Sandhu, is 69-year old and had hypertension, stroke & cardiac problem. It is well to note, too, that Dr. Sandhu himself is an ophthalmologist and a retired CMO.
With the availability of the latest holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HOLEP) technique, Dr. Anand Sehgal was able to successfully operate on the two patients and give new life to them. Dr. Anand Sehgal is M.Ch. (Urology) and chief endoscopic & laparoscopic urologist at RG Stone And Super Speciality Hospital. HOLEP is a minimally invasive surgery, for treatment of BPH using the state-of-the-art 100-watt holmium laser. Mr. Singh was operated on December 16, 2006, and Dr. Sandhu on January 6, 2007.
Dr. Chan Bir Singh, partner, RG Stone And Super Speciality Hospital, also informed that the RG Hospital chain is the first to introduce holmium laser in India and that the RG Stone and Super Speciality Hospital, Ludhiana is currently the only institution possessing the holmium laser, not only in entire Punjab but in entire region up-north Delhi.
The prostate is part of a man’s genitals. The prostate is a walnut-sized gland located beneath the bladder and in front of the rectum. For men over 50, the most common prostate problem is prostate enlargement. This condition is also called benign prostatic hyperplasia or BPH.
BPH occurs in older men; the prostate often enlarges to the point where urination becomes difficult. If the prostate grows too large it may constrict the urethra and impede the flow of urine, making urination difficult and painful and in some cases completely impossible. As men get older, their prostate keeps growing. As it grows, it squeezes the urethra making urination difficult since urine travels from the bladder through the urethra. There is no cure for BPH once it reaches a stage where urination is completely blocked and once prostate growth starts, it often continues, unless medical therapy is started.
Once a BPH patient reaches a stage where urination has completely blocked the bladder has to be emptied using a catheter. The patient is forced to carry the catheter inside his body and an external pouch carrying the drained urine.
Holmium Laser Enucleation of Prostate (HOLEP) is the latest modality used in the management of enlarged prostate. In this procedure, a 550-micron fibre attached to a 100-watt holmium laser machine is used to remove obstructive prostatic tissue and seal blood vessels. The enucleated gland is then pushed into the bladder, which is later sucked out through the urinary passage with the help of equipment called Morcellator. The Morcellator shreds the large pieces of the prostate into small pieces and simultaneously sucks these pieces out. The whole procedure takes around 45-90 minutes, depending on the size of the gland. This procedure is nearly bloodless as the laser beam when cuts the gland also seals the blood vessels.
Mr. Sohan Singh, 90, developed blockage of urinary passage two months ago. A catheter was put in his urine passage by his local doctor to help him pass the urine. The ultrasound revealed that the prostate size was 80 grams, which was abnormally large and had no cure but surgery. He was on anti-depressant drugs for the last many years and was also anemic. We thoroughly evaluated him and took him up for HOLEP surgery. The surgery was absolutely bloodless and uneventful. His catheter was removed within 24 hours of surgery and he started passing urine normally. Mr. Singh stayed in the hospital for only one night and went home without any catheter. After one month of the surgery, the patient is feeling absolutely fine and passing urine without any residue in his urinary bladder.
Dr. Sandhu, 69, was having obstructive urinary symptoms for the last year and developed acute urinary retention on December 30, 2006. He too was catheterized for the evacuation of his urinary bladder. Dr. Sandhu was on anticoagulant therapy due to past cardiac and stroke problems. In consultation with the RG Stone And Super Speciality Hospital, his prostate was found to be 45 grams in size. He, too, was assessed fit for HOLEP surgery. The 100 Watt Holmium Laser was used to remove the prostate and the surgery was completed without significant blood loss. The color of urine, after surgery, was absolutely clear (bloodless). Dr. Sandhu’s catheter was removed the next morning and he passed urine naturally. He was discharged the same evening. His total stay in the hospital was only 33 hours and he is doing well now.
Speaking on the success of the operations, Dr. Chan Bir Singh said, “It is always our endeavor to bring the best in technology, equipment, international quality standards and full-time dedicated doctors and surgeons, who possess the best know-how in the industry to our patients so as to help them achieve the best treatment, relief, and succor that medical science can provide. We are very pleased that with the help of the latest technology and highly trained doctors, many of our patients now look at their life with new hope. We pledge ourselves to continue to drive the limits of excellence in the field of urology and stone management.”
RG Hospital Chain, an ISO 9001:2000 certified organization, was established in 1986 with its foundation in Mumbai. The group opened its sixth and latest hospital at Model Town, Ludhiana, in November 2006. This is India’s only chain of super speciality hospitals for urology, joint replacement, ENT, and laparoscopy offering all available modalities of stone disease management and prostate disease management under one roof. The hospital uses US FDA approved, state-of-the-art equipment and modular operation theaters with lamina flows. RG hospitals have treated over 40,000 patients at their branches all over India including 6,500 patients from abroad.
