SEATTLE — As men age, it’s common to have urinary problems, and it may be related to your prostate.
“Typically in a man, the prostate actually serves as a sexual function organ,” said Dr. Khanh Pham, urologist at Overlake Medical Center and Clinics. “As a man ages, the prostate can get enlarged over time, and it can impact urinary function.”
Men over the age of 50 are more at risk of an enlarged prostate, also known as Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH). This means the prostate has grown to be larger than normal, but it is not prostate cancer.
BPH can affect your ability to hold urine or empty the bladder. Symptoms can include urinating frequently, increased urgency, incontinence, a slow urinary stream and straining. If you’re experiencing these symptoms, it’s important to talk with your primary care physician about them.
“I’ve seen over the years many men will say ‘well it’s just a normal part of aging,’ and they ignore it,” Dr. Pham said. “They just assume that everything’s okay. They kind of suffer many years when they don’t have to.”
Your primary care physician can refer you to a urologist after an initial exam. A urologist will do a more in-depth evaluation and provide treatment options. Overlake Medical Center offers an innovative treatment, called Aquablation, to treat BPH.
“Overlake Hospital is actually the only place in the Western Washington region that has this technology,” Dr. Pham said.
Aquablation uses robotic technology to control a heat-free waterjet that removes excess prostate tissue that then relieves a variety of symptoms patients are experiencing. Recovery from this procedure is relatively minimal. Patients often spend just one night in the hospital and go home the next day without a catheter.
“There’s a lot of excitement in our group about it,” Dr. Pham said.
To learn more about BPH and prostate health, visit the Overlake Medical Center website.
Sponsored by Overlake Medical Center.
Segment Producer Joseph Suttner. Watch New Day Northwest 11 a.m. weekdays on KING 5 and streaming live on KING5.com. Contact New Day.