5 Signs of an Enlarged Prostate

Life is full of rites of passage and milestones — some good, some not so great. We’re going to classify an enlarged prostate, which is medically known as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), under the not-so-great category, especially if it’s giving you trouble.

BPH is incredibly common — the issue affects about 70% of men in their 60s, and this number jumps to 80% in men over the age of 70.

As a practice that focuses on men’s health and urology, BPH falls squarely into the wheelhouse here at Arizona Urology, and our team has no small amount of experience helping patients to manage symptoms as they develop. 

BPH basics

Let’s first set the scene a little with a brief description of BPH. Your prostate is a small gland that encircles your urethra, right where it meets your bladder. This gland’s sole responsibility is to produce seminal fluid to nourish, carry, and protect your sperm. 

Your prostate goes through two growth periods — once during puberty when it doubles in size and then again at 25, which is the start of a long and slow growth period that lasts the rest of your life.

As your prostate continues to increase in size, it can start to interfere with your urinary tract, which is where symptoms come in, and we get into those next.

Common signs of an enlarged prostate

While most men’s prostates continue their slow growth through life, not all men develop symptoms. By the numbers, about 20% to 30% of men develop symptoms that require treatment by the age of 80.

What most of these men encounter with BPH includes:

1. Trouble starting to urinate

As the prostate starts to squeeze your urethra, you might run into issues initiating urination. You can push and squeeze, but urine isn’t getting through easily.

2. Weak urine stream

When urine does get through, it can be a much weaker stream than you’re used to, and it can start, stop, and sputter along the way. As well, your urine might dribble toward the end.

3. Frequent urination

There are two types of symptoms with BPH: obstructive and changes in the bladder. One of the biggest complaints among men with symptomatic BPH is frequent urination, which falls under bladder changes. This frequency can work its way up to once every hour or two and often during the night, which can really disrupt sleep.

4. Urgency

Also listed under bladder changes is urgency — you feel an urgent need to urinate, even if you’ve just gone.

5. Incomplete emptying

Lastly, many men with an enlarged prostate report feeling like their bladder never fully empties, leaving them with an uncomfortable feeling.

Solutions for an enlarged prostate

If you’ve developed any of the symptoms of BPH that we just outlined above, the good news is that we offer solutions that include:

• Medications to relax your bladder and prostate
• Medications that shrink your prostate
• Bladder retraining
• Laser therapy to remove extra prostate tissue
• Urolift® — we place implants that move the prostate out of the way of your urethra 
• Aquablation® therapy to reduce the size of your prostate

From medications to in-office procedures to surgery, we want you to know that no matter the extent of the enlargement in your prostate, there is a solution that can help restore normal urinary function.

If you're struggling with an enlarged prostate and you want to figure out which treatment path is right for you, please schedule an appointment at one of our offices in Phoenix, Goodyear, Gilbert, and Glendale, Arizona, today.