PROCEDURES

Urological surgical procedures concern all areas of modern urology and are performed for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes.

Diagnostic procedures are usually performed under local anesthesia, and do not require hospitalization. These include:

• Transrectal prostate biopsy
• Cystoscopy

Therapeutic surgical procedures can be performed under either general, epidural or local anesthesia, depending on the type of procedure, and are performed for the treatment of:

• Benign conditions of the urinary system, such as benign prostatic hyperplasia, urinary tract stone formation, phimosis, hydrocele and varicocele
• Malignant neoplasms of the urinary system such as prostate cancer, bladder cancer, renal cancer, testicular cancer and penile cancer

In recent years, technological advances and the development of minimally invasive techniques have made possible the treatment of many urinary system conditions endoscopically or laparoscopically.

Examples of such procedures are:

• Transurethral resection of the prostate in saline (TURis)
• Transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT)
• Laparoscopic nephrectomy
• Robot-assisted radical prostatectomy

The use of the above techniques has led to a significant reduction in blood loss, length of hospital stay, postoperative pain and complications.