Preserving Ejaculation: A Guide Through the Landscape of Interventional and Surgical Options for Benign Prostatic Obstruction

Surgical treatment for benign prostatic obstruction in patients wishing to preserve normal ejaculation remains a urological challenge. Standard surgical techniques are associated with high rates of postoperative ejaculatory dysfunction. Research is now concentrating on ejaculation-preserving modifications of standard surgical techniques and on alternative minimally invasive interventional techniques. Ejaculation-preserving modifications seem to be superior to standard techniques for preservation of ejaculation with comparable efficacy in terms of improvement in lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). Among the alternative minimally invasive interventional techniques, prostatic artery embolization and prostatic urethral lift provide high success rates for patients wishing to preserve ejaculation but are inferior to standard surgical techniques regarding improvement in LUTS. High-quality studies focusing on ejaculatory function as the primary outcome are still lacking. PATIENT SUMMARY: Benign prostate enlargement can cause obstruction of the lower urinary tract. We reviewed the evidence for techniques that preserve ejaculatory function in treatment of this condition. These ejaculation-preserving treatment techniques may have lower efficacy in improving bothersome urinary symptoms.