TURP And Other Surgeries For Enlarged Prostate & BPH - WebMD

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Written by WebMD Editorial ContributorsMedically Reviewed by Melinda Ratini, MS, DO on January 13, 2026

• 5 Questions to Ask Before Surgery
• Minimally Invasive Procedures
• When You Need More Invasive Surgery
• Types of Surgery
• Other Things to Consider

8 min read

Medications can help most men with an enlarged prostate, but for some, they might not always be enough to ease symptoms such as weak urine flow, and dribbling.

When you’re one of those men, you have surgical options to treat your benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH.

5 Questions to Ask Before Surgery

As you think over the options for surgery, ask your doctor these questions:

• Which surgery might be best for me?
• Is there a good chance my condition will get better?
• How much will it improve?
• What are the chances of side effects from various surgeries? Is one surgery more likely than another to cause trouble with erections, ejaculations, or urinary incontinence? 
• How long might the side effects last?
• How long might it take me to recover from surgery? What, if anything, can I do before surgery to make my recovery easier?
• Is there a chance that I’ll need to have this treatment again?

With newer technologies, doctors can do some minimally invasive procedures with tiny cuts (incisions) or use tube-style instruments that they insert into your body. These procedures may not treat the symptoms to the same degree or durability as more invasive surgical options, but they do have faster recoveries, less pain afterward, and reduced risks.

Other times, the traditional and more invasive surgery may be needed. It all depends on your case and what you and your doctor decide is best for you.

Doctors can choose from these minimally invasive procedures or traditional surgeries to treat moderate to severe symptoms. These procedures are also used if tests show that your ability to pee is seriously affected.

Minimally Invasive Procedures

These procedures relieve symptoms of BPH better than medicines. Other benefits include faster recovery and less pain than traditional, open surgery and fewer risks. These procedures do not involve removing or cutting into the prostate.

Minimally invasive surgery might be an option for you if BPH medications didn’t help or if you have symptoms like:

• Weak stream of pee
• Straining to start to pee
• Urinary tract obstruction, bladder stones, or blood in your pee
• Trouble fully emptying your bladder when peeing
• Bleeding from your prostate

Your doctor will consider the size of your prostate and your overall health to determine if minimally invasive surgery or procedures are right for you. 

A few of the types of minimally invasive surgery or procedures include:

• Water vapor thermal therapy (Rezūm). A doctor places a device into the tube through which you pee (your urethra). A small needle on the end of the device delivers water vapor (steam) to destroy the extra prostate tissue that’s been squeezing your urethra. As you heal, the extra tissue breaks down and goes away, which lets your prostate shrink. Most often, you get this procedure in your doctor’s office. You’re given local anesthesia or a pill for pain.
• Transurethral microwave therapy (TUMT) (Prolieve, CoreTherm). This procedure uses a microwave antenna attached to a flexible tube that your doctor inserts into your bladder. The microwave heat kills off excess prostate tissue. This helps shrink your prostate and eases the flow of pee. You're given a local anesthetic to prevent pain in the prostate area. You also might get intravenous (IV) sedation, which helps you relax and feel drowsy. In general, TUMT is only for men with smaller prostates in certain situations because there’s a chance you’ll need the surgery again someday.
• Prostatic urethral lift (PUL) (UroLift). This procedure uses a permanently placed device to lift and hold the enlarged prostate tissue out of the way, so it no longer blocks the urethra. The procedure does not affect sexual function. It is typically performed using local or general anesthesia in a doctor's office, ambulatory surgery center, or operating room. Patients typically return home the same day without a catheter.
• Temporary implanted prostatic device (TIPD) (iTind). Your doctor uses a thin, lighted tube called a cystoscope to place a device in your urethra. The device helps reshape the channel that pee passes through. This can lead to better flow of urine and fewer symptoms of BPH. Your doctor removes the device after about a week.
• Catheterization. A thin, flexible tube called a catheter is placed into your bladder to drain urine. The catheter goes through your urethra or through a small puncture in your bladder above the pubic bone. Your doctor may have you place and remove the catheter every six to eight hours, or leave it in for longer amounts of time. This procedure can help if you have trouble controlling your bladder and a blocked prostate, but the benefits don’t last long. Your doctor might suggest it if you’re waiting for BPH medicine to work, waiting for surgery, managing an infection, or if you can’t get surgery. 
• Prostate artery embolization (PAE). This procedure blocks blood flow to your prostate in an attempt to shrink the whole gland and make your symptoms better. PAE may ease urinary symptoms in the short term, but there’s not enough research for experts to recommend it over other minimally invasive procedures for most men with BPH. A doctor called an interventional radiologist does PAE. They have experience using imaging tests (like X-ray, MRI, and ultrasound) that let them see inside your body and guide them during procedures. 

When You Need More Invasive Surgery

You may need more invasive surgery. You and your doctor will decide which is better for you. Doctors often consider invasive surgery a better long-term solution for relief of bothersome urinary symptoms. Ask about the benefits and side effects of any surgery your doctor suggests.

Your doctor may recommend more invasive surgery if:

• You’re not able to pee at all.
• Lifestyle changes, medicines, or minimally invasive treatments didn’t work for you.
• You find blood in your urine that is not getting better.
• You get bladder stones.
• You get urinary tract infections a lot.
• You have kidney damage.

More invasive surgeries done under general anesthesia include:

• Transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP). This is a common surgery to treat BPH. Your doctor removes portions of the prostate that are affecting your urine flow. There is no cutting and no external scars are seen since a scope is inserted through the urethra to remove the excess tissue. With TURP, some men might get what’s called “retrograde ejaculation” (ejaculation of semen into the bladder instead of through the urethra). 
• Transurethral incision of the prostate (TUIP). This surgery does not involve removing prostate tissue. A few small cuts are made in the prostate to reduce the gland's pressure on the urethra, making urination easier. This procedure is an option for some men, such as those with smaller prostates. With TUIP, there is much less risk of retrograde ejaculation compared with TURP. However, it usually gives you symptom relief equal to TURP. One possible downside: Some men need a repeat TUIP. Doctors decide which to use based mainly on the prostate's size.
• Laser surgery. A doctor uses laser energy to kill prostate tissue and shrink the gland. This may not be as effective on larger prostates. Laser procedures usually give you symptom relief and better urinary flow similar to TURP. But some laser therapies cause fewer side effects than others and also reduce the risk of bleeding. Long-term studies are needed to find out whether laser treatments are as effective as TURP. There are two main types of laser surgery: Ablation procedures can get rid of prostate tissue that block the flow of urine; one example of this is called photoselective vaporization of the prostate, or PVP (GreenLight). Enucleative procedures remove prostate tissue that blocks urine flow and keeps the tissue from growing back; an example of this is called holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HoLEP).
• Transurethral vaporization of the prostate (TUVP) (PlasmaKinetic, TURis). Your doctor places a thin, tube-like device called a resectoscope into your urethra. This lighted device includes a tool that gives off an electrical current to destroy prostate tissue. TUVP might be an option if you have a larger prostate and want to avoid getting surgery that involves cuts (incisions).
• Transurethral water-jet ablation (Aquablation). Your doctor uses high-pressure water jets to destroy extra prostate tissue. The doctor uses ultrasound imaging to find the extra tissue, and then sends the water jets to that area. After this, they seal small blood vessels with another tool to lower the risk of bleeding.
• Open prostatectomy (open surgery). A doctor often does this when the prostate is greatly enlarged, when there are complications, or when the bladder has been damaged and needs repair. In open surgery, the surgeon makes a cut and takes out the enlarged tissue from the prostate.
• Laparoscopic and robotic prostatectomy. Laparoscopic or robotic surgery differs from traditional open surgery by making four small incisions as opposed to one large one to perform surgery to remove the enlarged tissue of the prostate.

Types of Surgery

The kinds of surgeries you might talk over with your doctor could include:

• Open prostatectomy (open surgery). A doctor often does this when the prostate is greatly enlarged, when there are complications, or when the bladder has been damaged and needs repair. In open surgery, the surgeon makes a cut and takes out the enlarged tissue from the prostate.
• Laparoscopic and robotic prostatectomy. Laparoscopic or robotic surgery differs from traditional open surgery by making four small incisions as opposed to one large one to perform surgery to remove the enlarged tissue of the prostate.

Other Things to Consider

Before you have one of these procedures, talk with your doctor about whether you’ll be given something to numb the area (“local anesthesia”) or whether you’ll be given something so you won’t be awake (“general anesthesia”) during the procedure. What you get and where you have it depends on the procedure.

Your doctor will give you instructions on how to prepare for any of them.

Surgery can ease many BPH symptoms, but it may not relieve them all. If there are certain complications, such as a weak bladder, there may still be urinary problems after surgery, although this is rare.

With any BPH surgery, there may be side effects or complications such as bleeding, narrowing of the urine tube also known as urethral stricture, urinary incontinence or leakage, erectile dysfunction, and retrograde ejaculation.

The best treatment for an enlarged prostate is not the same for every man. Talk to your doctor about the risks and benefits of each procedure.

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