Holmium laser enucleation of the prostate versus thulium laser enucleation of the prostate for the treatment of large-volume prostates > 80 ml: 18-month follow-up results.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To compare the perioperative and functional outcomes of holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HoLEP) and thulium laser enucleation of the prostate (ThuLEP) for the treatment of large-volume benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) (> 80 ml). METHODS: A total of 116 consecutive patients with BPH were randomized to be treated surgically with either HoLEP (n = 58) or ThuLEP (n = 58), following the classical three-lobe enucleation technique. Follow-up was assessed at 1, 3, 6, 12 and 18 months after surgery. RESULTS: At 18 months, the lower urinary tract symptom index was improved significantly in both groups compared with the baseline values. The operative time (78.4 ± 8.0 vs. 71.4 ± 6.4 min) and enucleation time (61.2 ± 5.4 vs. 56.4 ± 8.4 min) were significantly shorter for ThuLEP compared to HoLEP (both p < 0.001). There were no significant differences between the two groups regarding morcellation time, resected weight, hemoglobin decrease, catheter time and hospital stay (p > 0.05). The HoLEP and ThuLEP groups had equivalent International Prostate Symptom Scores (3 [3-3] vs. 3 [3-3], p = 0.776), quality of life (1 [1-2] vs. 2 [1-2], p = 0.809), Qmax (25.3 ± 4.8 ml/s vs. 24.7 ± 4.4 ml/s, p = 0.470), postvoid residual urine (PVR) (6.1 [2.6-20.8] vs. 7.7 [3.1-22.8] ml, p = 0.449) and PSA (0.84 ± 0.32 vs. 0.90 ± 0.34 ml, p = 0.309) at 18 months postoperatively. CONCLUSION: Both HoLEP and ThuLEP relieve lower urinary tract symptoms in a comparable way with high efficacy and safety. ThuLEP was statistically superior to HoLEP in operation time and enucleation time, although the differences were clinically negligible.