Publisher's Synopsis
Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a common disorder. Disease progression that leads to benign prostatic obstruction (BPO) and lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) results in so-called symptomatic BPH. Development of improved pharmacological treatments offer alternatives to the transurethral resection of the prostate. The contributions to this text consider the medical therapies available for the treatment of symptomatic BPH and emphasize the need to focus on the patient's requirements, as well as those of the urologist, when advocating a particular treatment.;The text introduces questionnaires designed to quantify LUTS and their associated bothersomeness and quality of life, and describes the treatment options available to patients, including data on the cost of treating LUTS suggestive of BPO. The range of medical therapies available is also discussed, along with the benefits of alpha1-adrenoceptor antagonists over 5alpha-reductase inhibitors or phytotherapy in terms of effects on symptoms, and related disease-specific quality of life is shown. The complications associated with treating co-morbidity in the elderly population is also described in detail, focusing on the fact that in patients with concomitant hypertension and symptomatic BPH, hypertension should be treated optimally and before the treatment of symptomatic BPH. Finally, results regarding the safety and efficacy of tamsulosin, a subtype-selective alpha1A-adrenoceptor antagonist, are presented.