Is Prostate Urethral Lift Effective in Patients with Multiple Comorbidities?

A prostatic urethral lift (PUL) can be performed under local anesthesia in patients normally at high risk for general anesthesia due to multiple comorbidities. However, the clinical efficacy of PULs in patients with multiple comorbidities remains unknown. Therefore, in this this study, we aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of the PUL in patients with a high number of comorbidities by comparing its clinical efficacy in these patients with that in healthy individuals. We performed a retrospective observational cohort study, in which patients who underwent a PUL between December 2016 and January 2019 at a single tertiary care center were categorized into two groups: healthy individuals who wanted to preserve sexual function (Group 1) and patients with a high number of comorbidities who were at high risk for general anesthesia, based on an American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score of ≥3 (Group 2). The International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), maximum urinary flow rate (Qmax), and post-void residual urine (PVR) were obtained preoperatively and compared throughout the 2-year follow-up. A total of 66 patients were enrolled, of whom 36 patients were included in Group 1 and 30 in Group 2. In Group 1, IPSS, IPSS quality of life (QoL), and Qmax significantly improved and were then maintained during follow-up, whereas, in Group 2, improvements in these parameters were not maintained during follow-up, except for IPSS QoL. Eleven patients (36%) in Group 2 required additional treatment for the recurrence of lower urinary tract symptoms. In conclusion, patients with a high number of comorbidities had a low therapeutic effect after PUL, suggesting a high rate of treatment failure. Therefore, comorbidity status should be considered when evaluating the potential benefits of the PUL procedure during preoperative counseling.