Penile prosthesis – a viable solution for erectile dysfunction refractory to conservative therapy

Introduction: Erectile dysfunction(ED) is a serious condition which can affect men of all ages, with an important impact over the quality of life. When conservative therapy fails, a viable solution is the penile prosthesis implantation (PPI). Objective: The purpose of this paper is to present data from recent literature regarding the satisfaction rates of men who have undergone penile PPI and as well as the partners satisfaction rates, ease of use, informations regarding long term survival of these prosthesis, postoperative complications and long distance complications, the effectiveness and the way that penile prosthesis have influenced the quality of life of the men who have opted for this solution. Material and methods: We have analyzed recent long term studies concerning the outcomes of the PPI, studies which were made retrospectively, over a period of time of 10 to 15 years. Results: Compared with the conservative treatment for ED, the satisfaction rates achieved after penile prosthesis implantation are higher. According to these studies, the overall patient’s satisfaction is 70-90%. The difference between patient and their partners’ satisfaction rate is negligible, this difference ranging between 2 to 8%. The satisfaction rate regarding the adequate erection for sexual intercourse is 80-90%. The overall satisfaction rates for the malleable prostheses are lower compared with inflatable devices, 30-75%, respectively 75-90% for the inflatable prosthesis. The mechanical and overall survival rates for the malleable prosthesis range between 65-80% at 10 years, and 58-75% for the inflatable devices. Overall ease of use is rated as 78%. Complications after implantation can be encountered in less than 5% of cases and infections in less than 2%. The likelihood of continued use is higher in the group of the patients with the inflatable prosthesis compared with the malleable ones 70-80%, respectively 50-60%. Up to 85-90% of patients with inflatable prosthesis would recommend them. Conclusions: PPI is a high effective treatment for erectile dysfunction, refractory to pharmacological treatment. The inflatable penile prosthesis (IPP) provides more overall satisfaction than the malleable ones. The patients with IPP are more likely to continue using their devices than those with the malleable prosthesis. PPI improves significantly the quality of life for patients with erectile dysfunction

Neuroendocrine differentiation in prostate cancer – a review

Objectives: This review aims to provide practicing clinicians with the most recent knowledge of the biological nature of prostate cancer especially the information regarding neuroendocrine differentiation. Methods: Review of the literature using PubMed search and scientific journal publications. Results: Much progress has been made towards an understanding of the development and progression of prostate cancer. The prostate is a male accessory sex gland which produces a fraction of seminal fluid. The normal human prostate is composed of a stromal compartment (which contains: nerves, fibroblast, smooth muscle cells, macrophages) surrounding glandular acins – epithelial cells. Neuroendocrine cells are one of the epithelial populations in the normal prostate and are believed to provide trophic signals trough the secretion of neuropeptides that diffuse and influence surrounding epithelial cells. Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed malignancy in men. In prostate cancer, neuroendocrine cells can stimulate growth of surrounding prostate adenocarcinoma cells (proliferation of neighboring cancer cells in a paracrine manner by secretion of neuroendocrine products). Neuroendocrine prostate cancer is an aggressive variant of prostate cancer that commonly arises in later stages of castration resistant prostate cancer. The detection of neuroendocrine prostate cancer has clinical implications. These patients are often treated with platinum chemotherapy rather than with androgen receptor targeted therapies. Conclusion: This review shows the need to improve our knowledge regarding diagnostic and treatment methods of the Prostate Cancer, especially cancer cells with neuroendocrine phenotype

Antibiotic resistant urinary tract infections in an urology ward

Introduction: UTI (urinary tract infections) represent a central pathology for a urological service. Antibiotic resistance is growing at a steady and alarming rate worldwide and especially in Romania. Method and materials: We have analyzed all the patients that were admitted to our clinic for continuous hospitalization between January 2015 and October 2015. All patients undergone urine culture and all cultures positive had an antibiogram worked up. We have selected all patients that had antibiotic resistance to at least an antibiotic. Results: From 1745 patients admitted for continuous hospitalization, we had 180 positive urine cultures at admission from which 125 had at least an antibiotic resistance. Conclusions: Antibiotic resistance is a serious phenomenon, with potential lethal complications, which we encounter daily in urological practice

Complications of radical retropubic prostatectomy – our experience

Introduction: Radical retropubic prostatectomy represents in its various forms (open, laparoscopic and robotic) the "gold standard" treatment for adenocarcinoma of the prostate. Unfortunately like al treatment solutions it has its shortcomings. Retropubic radical prostatectomy, external beam radiation therapy and brachytherapy are the curative options. Materials and Method: The experience of Clinic of Urology from Central Military Hospital representing more than 100 cases was analyzed . Classical open retropubic prostatectomy was performed in all cases. We focused in this paper on intraoperative complications and also precocious and late postoperative complications. Results: Our results are matching the other centers in terms of intraoperative complications (blood loss), early postoperative complications (hematuria, urinary tract infection, lymphatic drainage) or late postoperative complications (erectile dysfunction and urinary incontinence). However none of these complications are to be underestimated Conclusions: The limits of this intervention can be pushed a litle bit further, in our opinion the age factor is a relative one, some of these patients having a longer than 10 years life expectancy. It provides good oncological outcome with manageable complications most of the times