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Urethroplasty patient experiences/updates
Dear All,
I've recently joined medhelp looking for some insight into patient experiences regarding their urethroplasties. I've noticed that many on medhelp have had this procedure done and would really appreciate some feedback. I've been diagnosed with a 1-2 cm stricture (urologist says retrograde urethrogram isn't 100% accurate in predicting lenght of stricture) in the bulbar portion. Now i'm scheduled for a possible urethroplasty (probably anastomotic) in december and would like to learn about how patients who've had this procedure done are doing. My questions are:
How did you feel immediately after the procedure? Pain, discomfort
How long were you bed bound after the procedure?
How cumbersome was having the catheter placed for 2-3 weeks?
How long did it take you to return to normal life activities?
How is your urine flow NOW compared to prior to surgery AND compared to just after surgery? Any dribbling, any other issues?
How is your sexual function NOW(e.g. penile sensitivity, ejaculation speed, retrograde/stasis of semen)? Did anyone have any sexual dysfunction that slowly resolved?
If you've had the anastomotic urethroplasty (where the diseased portion is excised and the remaining portions joined), have you ever felt any tension in your penis during an erection?
In what area of the country did you have the procedure done? ( you don't have to answer this, I'm in the nyc area and am getting it done there)
I know i've asked a ton of questions but I'm just anxious about this procedure. I'm sure most of you can understand the anxiety. I've never had any procedure done before.
If you don't feel comfortable answering here, feel free to send me a private message. I eagerly await all responses.
Thanks and God Bless!!
I've recently joined medhelp looking for some insight into patient experiences regarding their urethroplasties. I've noticed that many on medhelp have had this procedure done and would really appreciate some feedback. I've been diagnosed with a 1-2 cm stricture (urologist says retrograde urethrogram isn't 100% accurate in predicting lenght of stricture) in the bulbar portion. Now i'm scheduled for a possible urethroplasty (probably anastomotic) in december and would like to learn about how patients who've had this procedure done are doing. My questions are:
How did you feel immediately after the procedure? Pain, discomfort
How long were you bed bound after the procedure?
How cumbersome was having the catheter placed for 2-3 weeks?
How long did it take you to return to normal life activities?
How is your urine flow NOW compared to prior to surgery AND compared to just after surgery? Any dribbling, any other issues?
How is your sexual function NOW(e.g. penile sensitivity, ejaculation speed, retrograde/stasis of semen)? Did anyone have any sexual dysfunction that slowly resolved?
If you've had the anastomotic urethroplasty (where the diseased portion is excised and the remaining portions joined), have you ever felt any tension in your penis during an erection?
In what area of the country did you have the procedure done? ( you don't have to answer this, I'm in the nyc area and am getting it done there)
I know i've asked a ton of questions but I'm just anxious about this procedure. I'm sure most of you can understand the anxiety. I've never had any procedure done before.
If you don't feel comfortable answering here, feel free to send me a private message. I eagerly await all responses.
Thanks and God Bless!!
> How did you feel immediately after the procedure? Pain, discomfort
I had urethroplasty using buccal mucosal grafts, taken from both sides of my mouth to treat two strictures (an acquired stricture from previous urethrotomy attempts, and the original stricture that had never given me any trouble before the first urethrotomy).
Mouth quite painful for a while; I put food in the blender and didn't really eat solid food for a couple of weeks.
Perineum moderately painful. I would move carefully. I wouldn't want to go right back to work and sit in an office chair all day.
> How long were you bed bound after the procedure?
1 day in hospital, went home next day.
> How cumbersome was having the catheter placed for 2-3 weeks?
It's an inconvenience. Doesn't stop me sleeping or walking. I didn't go to work during that period.
But this was not the first time for me, because I had to go through all that before after the original urethrotomy.
> How long did it take you to return to normal life activities?
Don't remember exactly now; my urethroplasty was five years ago. I phased back into work after maybe four weeks. Possibly could have shortened the time if I was under demands from employer, but lucky for me I had it easy.
> How is your urine flow NOW compared to prior to surgery AND
> compared to just after surgery? Any dribbling, any other issues?
Urine flow is has been good ever since (five years). I'm very pleased with the result, and would've had urethroplasty before if I'd known about it.
Dribbling other issues: I acquired them from the original urethrotomies years before. Urethroplasty can't fix that, I'm afraid.
> How is your sexual function NOW(e.g. penile sensitivity, ejaculation
> speed, retrograde/stasis of semen)? Did anyone have any sexual
> dysfunction that slowly resolved?
The original _urethrotomy_ destroyed my sexual function.
Spontaneous erections stopped altogether.
Stimulated erections are weak, transient, unreliable.
Ejaculation speed is zero - I can come, but the semen remains sequestered in the urethra.
Penile sensitivity is severely reduced.
Orgasm sensation: lost 95% or so.
After that, I really didn't have to worry about the risks from urethroplasty. Morning erections have actually improved a bit; no effect otherwise.
I had urethroplasty using buccal mucosal grafts, taken from both sides of my mouth to treat two strictures (an acquired stricture from previous urethrotomy attempts, and the original stricture that had never given me any trouble before the first urethrotomy).
Mouth quite painful for a while; I put food in the blender and didn't really eat solid food for a couple of weeks.
Perineum moderately painful. I would move carefully. I wouldn't want to go right back to work and sit in an office chair all day.
> How long were you bed bound after the procedure?
1 day in hospital, went home next day.
> How cumbersome was having the catheter placed for 2-3 weeks?
It's an inconvenience. Doesn't stop me sleeping or walking. I didn't go to work during that period.
But this was not the first time for me, because I had to go through all that before after the original urethrotomy.
> How long did it take you to return to normal life activities?
Don't remember exactly now; my urethroplasty was five years ago. I phased back into work after maybe four weeks. Possibly could have shortened the time if I was under demands from employer, but lucky for me I had it easy.
> How is your urine flow NOW compared to prior to surgery AND
> compared to just after surgery? Any dribbling, any other issues?
Urine flow is has been good ever since (five years). I'm very pleased with the result, and would've had urethroplasty before if I'd known about it.
Dribbling other issues: I acquired them from the original urethrotomies years before. Urethroplasty can't fix that, I'm afraid.
> How is your sexual function NOW(e.g. penile sensitivity, ejaculation
> speed, retrograde/stasis of semen)? Did anyone have any sexual
> dysfunction that slowly resolved?
The original _urethrotomy_ destroyed my sexual function.
Spontaneous erections stopped altogether.
Stimulated erections are weak, transient, unreliable.
Ejaculation speed is zero - I can come, but the semen remains sequestered in the urethra.
Penile sensitivity is severely reduced.
Orgasm sensation: lost 95% or so.
After that, I really didn't have to worry about the risks from urethroplasty. Morning erections have actually improved a bit; no effect otherwise.
Dear all. There are a lot of posts for USA and I just wanted to post up some info for those people in the UK.
I underwent urethroplasy 4 weeks ago. I had a 3cm stricture so they took a 4 cm graft from the inside of my mouth. Having gone from 3ml per sec to now 24ml per sec (at least), I have absolutley no regrets whatso ever... except for not getting it done sooner. I have to have a follow up flow test at 3 months and at 12 months but the average success rate for all procedures for this particular surgeon is around 90%. It's a no brainer. My life is significantly better. I sleep better, don't wory about getting caught short for the toilet, and can drink a good amount of water without the fear of wetting the bed when asleep. If all goes well, I also won't have to worry about further treatments for a longtime.
To answer the questions above (belatedly but might be useful to others) :
How did you feel immediately after the procedure? Pain, discomfort: RELIEVED IT WAS OVER, HIGH ON MEDS AND O2, NO PAIN IN MOUTH, VERY LITTLE PAIN BELOW. LAUGHED A LOT.
How long were you bed bound after the procedure? 2 DAYS IN HOSPITAL THEN 2 DAYS AT HOME (ALTHOUGH I DID GET UP A FEW TIMES). ON DAY 5 AFTER THE OP I WAS UP AND ABOUT AND DOING LIGHT CHORES AROUND THE HOUSE ALTHOUGH I DID FEEL WEAK
How cumbersome was having the catheter placed for 2-3 weeks? HMM. 1ST WEEK WAS TOUGH. THE END OF MY PENIS WAS VERY SENSITIVE AND THE NOCTURNAL ERECTIONS WERE... DIFFICULT. THE SUGGESTION ABOUT USING KY JELLY ON THE AREA OF CATHER BY TIP OF PENIS HELPS BUT ONLY ABOUT 50%. YOU NEED TO PULL YOUR FELLA BACK AS FAR AS POSSIBLE ALONG THE TUBE THEN APPLY THE GEL. GIVE YOURSELF PLENTY OF SLACK ON THE CATHETER TOO. BY WEEK 2 I HAD FOUND THE RIGHT PLACES TO STRAP THE LEG BAG FOR DAYTIME AND NIGHTIME USAGE AND MOVING AROUND THE HOUSE WAS FINE. SOMETIMES I EVEN FORGOT I HAD A CATHETER (!!)
How long did it take you to return to normal life activities? BY WEEK 2 I WAS FINE TO GET AROUND THE HOUSE. ONCE THE CATHETER CAME OUT I WAS STRAIGHT OUT THE FRONT DOOR AND WALKED INTO MY VILLAGE. IT'S NOW 4 WEEKS SINCE OP AND I STILL GET MILD FATIGUE FROM WALKING ABOUT BUT I'M BACK TO WORK. WILL START GOING BACK TO GYM NEXT WEEK, ALBEIT GENTLY
How is your urine flow NOW compared to prior to surgery AND compared to just after surgery? Any dribbling, any other issues? MAGNIFICENT!!! I AM A GOD AMONGST MEN. FINGERS CROSSED THAT IT STAYS THAT WAY ALTHOUGH SPLASHBACK IN URINALS IS A PROBLEM IF I'M NOT CAREFUL (JOKE). AS FOR DRIBBLING, I THINK I'M FINE. I GOT CAUGHT OUT A COUPLE OF TIMES THE DAY AFTER THE CATHETER WAS REMOVED. I'M NOW VERY CAREFULL TO 'SQUEEZE' THE LAST DROPS OUT USING THE PERINEAL MUSCLE/PELVIC FLOOR MUSCLE THEN GIVE IT A GOOD SHAKE. SINCE THEN NO PROBS ALTHOUGH I DO SHOVE A PAPER TOWEL DOWN THERE JUST IN CASE. I INTEND TO DO LOTS OF PELVIC FLOOR EXCERCISES TO HELP MATTERS.
How is your sexual function NOW(e.g. penile sensitivity, ejaculation speed, retrograde/stasis of semen)? Did anyone have any sexual dysfunction that slowly resolved? ERECETION, CHECK. SENSITIVITY, CHECK. SEMEN...WTF!!! DO NOT, WHATEVER YOU DO HAVE SEX OR MASTERBATE FOR AT LEAST 4 WEEKS AFTER THE CATHETER IS REMOVED. I TOOK MY FELLA FOR A TEST DRIVE 2 DAYS AFTER REMOVAL AND MY SEMEN HAD SO MUCH BLOOD IN IT TAHT IT LOOKED LIKE TOMATO KETCHUP. THE SURGEON SAID IT'S TO BE EXPECTED AND TO LEAVE IT ALONE!
If you've had the anastomotic urethroplasty (where the diseased portion is excised and the remaining portions joined), have you ever felt any tension in your penis during an erection?
HAD A GRAFT SO NO EXCISION. ERECTIONS DO FEEL TIGHT THOUGH ALTHOUGH I'M TOLD THAT WILL EASE UP.
I underwent urethroplasy 4 weeks ago. I had a 3cm stricture so they took a 4 cm graft from the inside of my mouth. Having gone from 3ml per sec to now 24ml per sec (at least), I have absolutley no regrets whatso ever... except for not getting it done sooner. I have to have a follow up flow test at 3 months and at 12 months but the average success rate for all procedures for this particular surgeon is around 90%. It's a no brainer. My life is significantly better. I sleep better, don't wory about getting caught short for the toilet, and can drink a good amount of water without the fear of wetting the bed when asleep. If all goes well, I also won't have to worry about further treatments for a longtime.
To answer the questions above (belatedly but might be useful to others) :
How did you feel immediately after the procedure? Pain, discomfort: RELIEVED IT WAS OVER, HIGH ON MEDS AND O2, NO PAIN IN MOUTH, VERY LITTLE PAIN BELOW. LAUGHED A LOT.
How long were you bed bound after the procedure? 2 DAYS IN HOSPITAL THEN 2 DAYS AT HOME (ALTHOUGH I DID GET UP A FEW TIMES). ON DAY 5 AFTER THE OP I WAS UP AND ABOUT AND DOING LIGHT CHORES AROUND THE HOUSE ALTHOUGH I DID FEEL WEAK
How cumbersome was having the catheter placed for 2-3 weeks? HMM. 1ST WEEK WAS TOUGH. THE END OF MY PENIS WAS VERY SENSITIVE AND THE NOCTURNAL ERECTIONS WERE... DIFFICULT. THE SUGGESTION ABOUT USING KY JELLY ON THE AREA OF CATHER BY TIP OF PENIS HELPS BUT ONLY ABOUT 50%. YOU NEED TO PULL YOUR FELLA BACK AS FAR AS POSSIBLE ALONG THE TUBE THEN APPLY THE GEL. GIVE YOURSELF PLENTY OF SLACK ON THE CATHETER TOO. BY WEEK 2 I HAD FOUND THE RIGHT PLACES TO STRAP THE LEG BAG FOR DAYTIME AND NIGHTIME USAGE AND MOVING AROUND THE HOUSE WAS FINE. SOMETIMES I EVEN FORGOT I HAD A CATHETER (!!)
How long did it take you to return to normal life activities? BY WEEK 2 I WAS FINE TO GET AROUND THE HOUSE. ONCE THE CATHETER CAME OUT I WAS STRAIGHT OUT THE FRONT DOOR AND WALKED INTO MY VILLAGE. IT'S NOW 4 WEEKS SINCE OP AND I STILL GET MILD FATIGUE FROM WALKING ABOUT BUT I'M BACK TO WORK. WILL START GOING BACK TO GYM NEXT WEEK, ALBEIT GENTLY
How is your urine flow NOW compared to prior to surgery AND compared to just after surgery? Any dribbling, any other issues? MAGNIFICENT!!! I AM A GOD AMONGST MEN. FINGERS CROSSED THAT IT STAYS THAT WAY ALTHOUGH SPLASHBACK IN URINALS IS A PROBLEM IF I'M NOT CAREFUL (JOKE). AS FOR DRIBBLING, I THINK I'M FINE. I GOT CAUGHT OUT A COUPLE OF TIMES THE DAY AFTER THE CATHETER WAS REMOVED. I'M NOW VERY CAREFULL TO 'SQUEEZE' THE LAST DROPS OUT USING THE PERINEAL MUSCLE/PELVIC FLOOR MUSCLE THEN GIVE IT A GOOD SHAKE. SINCE THEN NO PROBS ALTHOUGH I DO SHOVE A PAPER TOWEL DOWN THERE JUST IN CASE. I INTEND TO DO LOTS OF PELVIC FLOOR EXCERCISES TO HELP MATTERS.
How is your sexual function NOW(e.g. penile sensitivity, ejaculation speed, retrograde/stasis of semen)? Did anyone have any sexual dysfunction that slowly resolved? ERECETION, CHECK. SENSITIVITY, CHECK. SEMEN...WTF!!! DO NOT, WHATEVER YOU DO HAVE SEX OR MASTERBATE FOR AT LEAST 4 WEEKS AFTER THE CATHETER IS REMOVED. I TOOK MY FELLA FOR A TEST DRIVE 2 DAYS AFTER REMOVAL AND MY SEMEN HAD SO MUCH BLOOD IN IT TAHT IT LOOKED LIKE TOMATO KETCHUP. THE SURGEON SAID IT'S TO BE EXPECTED AND TO LEAVE IT ALONE!
If you've had the anastomotic urethroplasty (where the diseased portion is excised and the remaining portions joined), have you ever felt any tension in your penis during an erection?
HAD A GRAFT SO NO EXCISION. ERECTIONS DO FEEL TIGHT THOUGH ALTHOUGH I'M TOLD THAT WILL EASE UP.
I'm six weeks post my second buccal graft urethroplasty, the first one failed... and just ran across this website and thought I'd answer some of these questions from my point of view...
How did you feel immediately after the procedure? Immediately after, something called Dilautid was absolutely heavenly. Within about 12 hours, the pain was fairly intense, but I wouldn't have called it a "10" on the pain scale. By 48 hours, I lost the IV and was able to be fairly comfortable with oral Vicodin only.
How long were you bed bound after the procedure? 24 hours. Despite my objections, the doc and nurses insist I get up and walk down the hall.
How cumbersome was having the catheter placed for 2-3 weeks? Not as bad as you think. Sleeping *****, only because I could either lie on my back or 'sort-of' on my side. The lack of freedom to roll around was as bothersome as anything. I was really intent on keeping that tube sloping down to prevent bladder spasms.
How long did it take you to return to normal life activities? It takes a while... After my first, probably about 3-4 months. I'm at six weeks after this second one, and just started back to work (at a desk job) this week. Every day, I've come home and needed a nap.
How is your urine flow NOW compared to prior to surgery AND compared to just after surgery? Any dribbling, any other issues? Flow is good, hard to quantify, but good. Prior to surgery, both times, I had real concerns about going into retention and needing an 'emergency' SP tube, so to say the flow is better is an understatement. I had some dribbling after the first one, and still have some dribbling now, maybe a little more. It's a little inconvenient, but liveable. I asked my wife's advice on what type / size of pad she recommended. I took her up on it, and it's not much of an issue, to be honest. I understand that a lot of 40-ish men have some dribbling, stricture patient or not.
How is your sexual function NOW(e.g. penile sensitivity, ejaculation speed, retrograde/stasis of semen)? Did anyone have any sexual dysfunction that slowly resolved? After first surgery, I didn't have any change in any of these, in fact, erections while sleeping with the foley were really uncomfortable. This time around, I think ED might be an issue. I'm hopeful that it'll return slowly, and that if it doesn't some pharmaceutical assistance will help. This is a risk I accepted, but I hope it's temporary.
If you've had the anastomotic urethroplasty (where the diseased portion is excised and the remaining portions joined), have you ever felt any tension in your penis during an erection? I think my first one was augmented anastomotic, where some tissue was removed. I never noticed any tension.
In what area of the country did you have the procedure done? ( you don't have to answer this, I'm in the nyc area and am getting it done there) I had the first one at the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington, CT. The second one was at Lahey Clinic in Burlington, MA. I highly recommend Lahey, they have a surgeon who does only lower GU tract reconstruction (Jill Buckley is her name).
How did you feel immediately after the procedure? Immediately after, something called Dilautid was absolutely heavenly. Within about 12 hours, the pain was fairly intense, but I wouldn't have called it a "10" on the pain scale. By 48 hours, I lost the IV and was able to be fairly comfortable with oral Vicodin only.
How long were you bed bound after the procedure? 24 hours. Despite my objections, the doc and nurses insist I get up and walk down the hall.
How cumbersome was having the catheter placed for 2-3 weeks? Not as bad as you think. Sleeping *****, only because I could either lie on my back or 'sort-of' on my side. The lack of freedom to roll around was as bothersome as anything. I was really intent on keeping that tube sloping down to prevent bladder spasms.
How long did it take you to return to normal life activities? It takes a while... After my first, probably about 3-4 months. I'm at six weeks after this second one, and just started back to work (at a desk job) this week. Every day, I've come home and needed a nap.
How is your urine flow NOW compared to prior to surgery AND compared to just after surgery? Any dribbling, any other issues? Flow is good, hard to quantify, but good. Prior to surgery, both times, I had real concerns about going into retention and needing an 'emergency' SP tube, so to say the flow is better is an understatement. I had some dribbling after the first one, and still have some dribbling now, maybe a little more. It's a little inconvenient, but liveable. I asked my wife's advice on what type / size of pad she recommended. I took her up on it, and it's not much of an issue, to be honest. I understand that a lot of 40-ish men have some dribbling, stricture patient or not.
How is your sexual function NOW(e.g. penile sensitivity, ejaculation speed, retrograde/stasis of semen)? Did anyone have any sexual dysfunction that slowly resolved? After first surgery, I didn't have any change in any of these, in fact, erections while sleeping with the foley were really uncomfortable. This time around, I think ED might be an issue. I'm hopeful that it'll return slowly, and that if it doesn't some pharmaceutical assistance will help. This is a risk I accepted, but I hope it's temporary.
If you've had the anastomotic urethroplasty (where the diseased portion is excised and the remaining portions joined), have you ever felt any tension in your penis during an erection? I think my first one was augmented anastomotic, where some tissue was removed. I never noticed any tension.
In what area of the country did you have the procedure done? ( you don't have to answer this, I'm in the nyc area and am getting it done there) I had the first one at the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington, CT. The second one was at Lahey Clinic in Burlington, MA. I highly recommend Lahey, they have a surgeon who does only lower GU tract reconstruction (Jill Buckley is her name).
Can you update answers to your questions so that i would benefit people like me who are planning to undergo one.
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