Another Post-DaVinci Question

[Sharnova]

My husband  had the DaVinci procedure on June 19.  He had a Gleason score of 6 and the doctor said he spared both nerves and all the cancer seems to be gone.  Prior to the surgery he had no difficulty whatsoever achieving an erection at age 65 and, though he urinated with great frequency because of an enlarged prostate, was totally continent..

Now, although he does get signals that he has to urinate and does so frequently during the day, he still has to wear a Depends, especially if he's going to walk any distance. He goes through about three a day.  And he has not been able to achieve even a glimmer of any erection.

Is this normal after almost three months?  At what point should we consider seeing a urologist who specializes in impotency?

[Ash Tewari, MD, M.Ch.]

Hello Madam,

Post-prostatectomy incontinence is a considerable problem, depending on the surgical technique your surgeon employed it depends on how long it takes for continence to return. We have noticed that with our new techniques, we achieve about 85% continence at 3 month follow up, and that rate continues to increase until about one year. An important step not to omit is the KEGEL EXERCISES! They have been shown to improve continence early, doing 10 sets of 10 holding each exercise for approximately 5 seconds until incontinence has improved should be attempted.
Sexual function takes a while to recover, in most scenarios it is reported for 9 months to 12 months, however these statistics vary widely. After 3 months, you might consider seeing a sexual health specialist, is he taking any viagra after the procedure? For our robotic patients, we recommend viagra for 3 months after the case, half a tablet per day, what kind of regiment are you under?

Thanks!

[Sharnova]

Thank you very much, Dr. Tewari.  My husand did try Viagra with no result, but he only tried it once. I didn't want to try again too soon for fear it would be discouraging to him..  Perhaps it's time to try again.  And yes, he is doing the Kegel.