ABSTRACT

Currently transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) remains as the gold standard of surgical treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia. This procedure has several complications even when performed in skilled hands. Thus, various minimal invasive methods and advanced technological instruments have been introduced for the endoscopic treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia. Although the short term outcome of minimally invasive treatment options are comparable with the results of conventional TURP the reoperation rates are higher in the former declining their efficacy against monopolar TURP. At this point, techniques as bipolar TURP seems promising with similar success but lower complication rates than monopolar TURP. Long term results of bipolar TURP has not been settled on well-designed prospective randomized controlled trials but recently published studies constitute a significant step forward in this regard. This review will address trials comparing the prominent monopolar TURP with its promising alternative, bipolar TURP.