What are the disadvantages of HoLEP?
Clinically, there is a higher incidence of stress urinary incontinence for HoLEP (10-15%) as compared to TURP, especially in patients with larger prostates (>100gm). However, this problem is virtually resolved in all patients after 6 weeks. Second, there is a high learning curve for HoLEP (approximately 15 to 20 cases) before the surgeon becomes efficient with this technique. This equates to an investment in time and equipment for the surgeon to learn HoLEP.
