A prospective study to compare changes in male sexual function following holmium laser enucleation of prostate versus transurethral resection of prostate

INTRODUCTION: Transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) and holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HoLEP), both are considered standard endosurgical treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Many studies have evaluated changes in sexual function following treatment of BPH. However, data are sparse on comparative study between the two standard options of the treatment of BPH. AIM: The aim of this study was to compare changes in sexual function following HoLEP versus TURP using the International Index of Erectile Function-15 (IIEF-15) questionnaire. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A prospective study carried out for 4 years from May 2013 to April 2017. All patients with bothersome lower urinary tract symptoms due to BPH, who got admitted to the hospital for surgical management, were enrolled for the study and they underwent either HoLEP or TURP. Postoperatively, they were followed for 6 months at 1-, 3-, and 6-month interval. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Statistical testing was conducted with the Statistical Package for the Social Science system version 17.0. Continuous variables are presented as mean ± standard deviation, and categorical variables are presented as absolute numbers and percentage. The comparison of normally distributed continuous variables between the groups was performed using Student's t-test. For within the groups, paired t-test was used at 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months from the baseline. RESULTS: All the five domains of sexual function based on the IIEF-15 questionnaire remained significantly low at 6-month postsurgery in both the groups. CONCLUSIONS: By comparing the changes in sexual function between HoLEP and TURP group at the end of our study (6 months), we found no difference between the groups with regard to erectile function or overall sexual function as assessed by total IIEF-15 score.