BPH (benign prostatic hyperplasia) is commonly known as enlarged prostate. BPH is a non-cancerous condition in which prostate cells grow, enlarging the gland and causing it to squeeze the urethra. A variety of symptoms may result, including difficult, frequent or urgent urination.

It is very common. An estimated 50% of all men over the age of 50 suffer from BPH.

The treatment carries none of the side-effects of drugs or surgery: No erectile dysfunction, no incontinence, and no pain. The low risk makes the therapy potentially attractive for early treatment as a protection against more serious problems developing.

DC ablation uses the natural body chemistry to create regions of low pH at the positive electrodes and high pH regions at the negative electrodes. The body is continuously is regulating the pH balance within and around the cells. The temporary imbalance destroys the tissue within these regions safely and painlessly. These regions quickly return to a neutral pH by the normal cellular processes. Cells within these abnormal pH regions are absorbed by the immune system, forming voids in the lobes of the prostate. The voids relieve pressure on the urethra, relieving the symptoms of BPH.

prostaFix is being developed as a new minimally-invasive, office-based procedure that delivers targeted energy to treat symptomatic BPH, while leaving the surrounding tissue unharmed. The treatment is intended to be delivered in a single 30-minute session in an urologist's office.

The prostate gland is part of the male reproductive system. The adult prostate is about the size and shape of a walnut. Its primary function is to produce semen, the fluid that carries sperm. It surrounds the urethra, the tube that carries urine from the bladder.

If you are experiencing symptoms of BPH that are affecting your quality of life, such as losing sleep because you need to wake during the night to urinate, you are unable to urinate, you are unable to delay urination, have hesitancy, or a weak urine stream, check with your urologist to discuss if it is time to seek treatment for BPH.

prostaFix is expected to undergo a clinical study in early 2016. It is anticipated that the system will be available in 2017 pending regulatory approvals in the first regions.