Benign prostatic hypertrophy treatment – Alfuzosin, medication to shrink prostate

Alfuzosin is a 1 receptor antagonist that works by relaxing the muscles in the prostate and bladder neck, making it easier to urinate

. It is marketed in the United States by Sanofi Aventis under the brand name Uroxatral and elsewhere under the tradename Xatral. FDA approved Alfuzosin in June 2003 for the treatment of BPH.

The two main medications for management of Benign prostatic hypertrophy treatment or BPH are alpha blockers and 5-reductase inhibitors. Alpha blockers (technically 1-adrenergic receptor antagonists) are the most common choice for initial therapy in the USA and Europe. Alpha blockers used for BPH include doxazosin, terazosin, alfuzosin, and tamsulosin. All five are equally effective but have slightly different side effect profiles. The older drugs phenoxybenzamine and prazosin are not recommended. Alpha blockers relax smooth muscle in the prostate and the bladder neck, thus decreasing the blockage of urine flow. Common side effects of alpha blockers include orthostatic hypotension, ejaculation changes, nasal congestion, and weakness.

The 5-reductase inhibitors finasteride and dutasteride are another treatment option. These medications inhibit 5a-reductase, which in turn inhibits production of DHT, a hormone responsible for enlarging the prostate. Effects may take longer to appear than alpha blockers, but they persist for many years. When used together with alpha blockers, a reduction of BPH progression to acute urinary retention and surgery has been noted in patients with larger prostates. Side effects include decreased libido and ejaculatory or erectile dysfunction.

More than 45% of man over the age of 45 face problem with enlarged prostate glands where the prostate often enlarges to the point where urination becomes difficult. Adenomatous prostatic growth is believed to begin at approximately age 30 years. An estimated 50% of men have histologic evidence of BPH by age 50 years and 75% by age 80 years. In 40-50% of these patients, BPH becomes clinically significant. Older men often have corpora amylacea (amyloid), dense accumulations of calcified proteinaceous material, in the ducts of their prostates. The corpora amylacea may obstruct the lumens of the prostatic ducts, and may underlie some cases of BPH. It is characterized by hyperplasia of prostatic stromal and epithelial cells, resulting in the formation of large, fairly discrete nodules in the periurethral region of the prostate. When sufficiently large, the nodules compress the urethral canal to cause partial, or sometimes virtually complete, obstruction of the urethra, which interferes with the normal flow of urine.

Symptoms include urinary hesitancy, frequent urination, dysuria (painful urination), increased risk of urinary tract infections, andurinary retention. Benign prostatic hyperplasia symptoms are classified as storage or voiding. Storage symptoms include urinary frequency, urgency (compelling need to void that cannot be deferred), urgency incontinence, and voiding at night (nocturia). Voiding symptoms include weak urinary stream, hesitancy (needing to wait for the stream to begin), intermittency (when the stream starts and stops intermittently), straining to void, and dribbling. Pain and dysuria are usually not present. These storage and voiding symptoms are evaluated using the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) questionnaire, designed to assess the severity of BPH.

BPH can be a progressive disease, especially if left untreated. Incomplete voiding results in stasis of bacteria in the bladder residue and an increased risk of urinary tract infection. Urinary bladder stones are formed from the crystallization of salts in the residual urine. Urinary retention, termed acute or chronic, is another form of progression. Acute urinary retention is the inability to void, while in chronic urinary retention the residual urinary volume gradually increases, and the bladder distends. Some patients that suffer from chronic urinary retention may eventually progress to renal failure, a condition termed obstructive uropathy.

Androgens are considered to play a permissive role in BPH by most experts. Androgens have to be present for BPH to occur, but do not necessarily directly cause the condition. Dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a metabolite of testosterone, is a critical mediator of prostatic growth. DHT is synthesized in the prostate from circulating testosterone by the action of the enzyme 5-reductase, type 2. This enzyme is localized principally in the stromal cells; hence, those cells are the main site for the synthesis of DHT. Rectal examination (palpation of the prostate through the rectum) may reveal a markedly enlarged prostate, usually affecting the middle lobe.

Diagnosis is usually done with the help of blood tests to rule out prostatic malignancy: Elevated prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels needs further investigations such as reinterpretation of PSA results, in terms of PSA density and PSA free percentage, rectal examination and transrectal ultrasonography. These combined measures can provide early cancer detection. Ultrasound examination of the testicles, prostate, and kidneys is often performed, again to rule out malignancy and hydronephrosis. Screening and diagnostic procedures for BPH are similar to those used for prostate cancer.

Patients should decrease fluid intake before bedtime, moderate the consumption of alcohol and caffeine-containing products, and follow timed voiding schedules.

Benign prostatic hypertrophy treatment Alfuzosin, medication to shrink prostate

By: Bhupinder Kaur Khera

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