The aim of this study was to develop a new simple method for measuring the vaporized volume and to evaluate the outcome of high-power potassium-titanyl-phosphate (KTP) photoselective laser vaporization. A total of 65 patients, with a mean age of 67.7 yr (range 53 to 85), were included in the primary analysis. The vaporized volume was calculated as the pre-operative volume minus the immediate post-operative volume plus the volume of the defect. For all patients, the subjective and objective parameters improved significantly after surgery. Six and 12 months after surgery, the group with a smaller vaporized volume (<15 g) had a lower reduction of the mean International Prostate Symptom Score (P=0.006 and P=0.004) and quality of life index (P=0.006 and P=0.004) when compared to the group with a greater vaporized volume (>or=15 g). There were no differences in the change of the maximum flow rate and post-void residual based on the vaporized volume. Our findings suggest that the subjective improvement, after a high-power KTP laser vaporization, may be dependent on the vaporized volume obtained after the procedure.
Keywords: Laser Therapy; Prostate; Prostatic Hyperplasia; Vaporization.