Glossary
5 alpha reductase inhibitor drugs – These drugs, often prescribed to men with BPH symptoms, interfere with the production of a hormone involved with BPH, shrink the prostate and improve symptoms.
Alpha blocker drugs – These drugs can help to relax the smooth muscle of the prostate and bladder neck, potentially improving urine flow and reducing blockage of the bladder.
Bladder stones – Buildups of mineral in the urinary bladder.
BPH (benign prostatic hyperplasia) – The medical term for an enlarged prostate. It is one of the most common medical conditions among mature men. BPH is not cancer, but a natural part of the aging process that occurs when the number of prostate cells increases. The progression of BPH causes the prostate gland to compress the urethra.
Cooled ThermoTherapy™ – This is the leading office-based treatment for BPH. Urologists have used it to treat more than 200,000 men. A unique cooling mechanism is the key to Cooled ThermoTherapy’s safety, effectiveness and long-lasting results.
Enlarged prostate – Also known as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).
Erectile dysfunction – The inability to have or maintain an erection of the penis.
IPSS (International Prostate Symptom Score) – The most widely used gauge of the lower urinary tract symptoms associated with the constriction of the urethra caused by an enlarging prostate. Symptoms measured include urgency and frequency of urination, problems with urination, and nocturia (getting up at night to urinate).
Laser surgery – A variety of laser procedures have been introduced over the past few years as an alternative to traditional TURP.
Non-surgical BPH procedures – These procedures utilize targeted heat energy and catheter technologies to destroy enlarged prostate tissue and relieve pressure on the urethra. They are performed with local anesthesia or oral medications in a urologist’s office or hospital outpatient setting.
Prostate – A gland that surrounds the neck of the bladder and the urethra in the male. It is partly muscular and partly glandular and consists of a median lobe and two lateral lobes. The gland secretes a fluid that forms part of the seminal fluid.
Retrograde Ejaculation - Ejaculation in which seminal fluid is discharged in the wrong direction, traveling up towards the bladder instead of outside the body through the urethra.
TURP (TransUrethral Resection of the Prostate) – is the most common surgical BPH procedure. The inner portion of the prostate is surgically removed.
Urethra – A canal for the discharge of urine extending from the bladder to the outside of the body.
Urinary incontinence – The involuntary discharge of urine.
Urinary retention – Inability to empty the bladder.
Urinary tract infection – Any infection of any of the organs of the urinary tract.
