Pattaya is a city with its fair share of foreign males who are past the first bloom of youth. So it’s hardly surprising that a seminar on prostate problems and erectile dysfunction attracted a full house on June 7 at the resort’s most popular private hospital. The joint speakers were prosthesis surgeons and urologists Dr Niti Navanimitkul and Assistant Professor Dr Yossak Sakulchaiyakorn who managed to incorporate humor and empathy into what might appear to be dry subjects.
About half of all men start to feel the symptoms of an enlarged prostate as early as age 50, but they rise to around eighty percent for guys in their 80s. There is no doubt about the tell-tale signs: getting up more than once in the middle of the night, a weak stream, difficulty in starting and stopping amongst them. Dr Niti took the audience through the various options such including lifestyle changes (cutting down on caffeine and alcohol), medication and several surgical procedures.
But he concentrated on the latest technique in minimum invasive surgery known as water vapor therapy. The steam device is inserted and a needle deployed to inject hot steam, which immediately becomes water, into the enlarged prostate. Only moderate sedation is required and the actual procedure takes only a remarkable 10 to 15 minutes and does not require a repeat. Post operation, it is necessary for patients to use a temporary catheter for a few days whilst the swelling reduces.
A lively question and answer session followed the presentation. Water vapor therapy is a one-off procedure, but the technique is new world-wide so it’s impossible to say how long it remains effective. The hope is 10 years. The improvement is not immediate but takes place after three or four weeks once the swelling has subsided. Several audience members, who had received the treatment at the hospital, confirmed that they were delighted with the results. A total package including consultations, preparation, surgery and follow-up currently cost 210,000 baht or about US$5,500.
The session then turned to male impotence or inability to sustain an erection , or as one conference member described it, “Like playing snooker with a rope”. Erectile dysfunction can start in men as early as 40. As with the enlarged prostate, there are several options including lifestyle changes, medication, vacuum constriction devices and various surgery as described by Dr Yossak.
Open discussion followed the presentation. It was pointed out that some medications for this condition lowered blood pressure which created problems for some men. There is research currently being conducted into permanent penile implants which are not yet generally available. The session concluded with participants being handed questionnaires on their personal health issues, with the opportunity to talk privately to Dr Niti or Dr Yossack about their personal scores. The seminar was free to all.
