Frequently Asked Questions

The FDA-cleared UroLift System is the only treatment that uses the Prostatic Urethral Lift (PUL) procedure. The UroLift System treatment is a proven, minimally invasive approach for treating lower urinary tract symptoms due to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) that can get men off BPH medications and avoid major surgery.⁴ The UroLift System’s permanent implants, delivered during a minimally invasive outpatient procedure, relieve prostate obstruction and open the urethra directly without cutting, heating, or removing prostate tissue.

You may be a candidate if you are a male, 45 years of age or older, have symptoms relating to BPH, and your prostate size is up to and including 100 grams. Speak with your urologist to see if the UroLift™ System treatment is right for you. If you have a known allergy to nickel, titanium or stainless steel, talk to your doctor about your allergy before getting a UroLift System treatment.

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• The UroLift Delivery Device is placed through the obstructed urethra to access the enlarged prostate.
• Small implants are permanently placed to lift and hold the enlarged prostate tissue out of the way and increase the opening of the urethra.
• The UroLift System procedure provides symptom relief by opening the obstructed urethra to improve flow and provide lasting BPH symptom relief.

There is no cutting, heating or ablating tissue; this makes the Urolift System one of the few Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) treatments that do not remove prostate tissue.

The UroLift System does not keep someone from having future BPH treatments if they are necessary.

The Implants are intended to be permanent. The implant is made up of standard surgical implantable materials: a nitinol capsular tab, a stainless steel urethral tab, and polyethylene suture that holds the two tabs together. Your doctor can remove the urethral implant, if needed. The suture can be cut and the urethral endpiece can be retrieved with a standard grasper. The capsular tab will remain in place inside the body.

A urologist, a doctor who specializes in the treatment of diseases of the urinary system and sex organs, uses the UroLift System to treat urinary symptoms due to BPH. Comprehensive training is provided to the urologist prior to using the UroLift System.

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The UroLift Implants are small permanent implants that hold the obstructing prostatic lobes apart. They are deployed through a needle that comes out of the delivery device.  Each implant is made with common implantable materials: nitinol, stainless steel, and suture.  The number of implants used in a procedure is determined by the treating physician and will vary by patient.

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Yes, the UroLift received FDA approval in September 2013.

Over 500,000 Urolift System treatments have been performed  worldwide.⁵

The Urolift procedure can be performed in your urologist’s office, ambulatory surgical center (ASC), or hospital setting as an outpatient procedure.⁵  Most men go home 1-2 hours after the procedure.

Your physician will determine which examinations are appropriate for you. The physician will likely ask you to fill out a questionnaire to assess your symptoms, otherwise known as IPSS (International Prostate Symptom Score). Additionally, some of the common examinations include Digital Rectal Exam (DRE), Transrectal Ultrasonography (TRUS), Bladder Ultrasound, and Urinalysis.

Find your IPSS Symptom Score

The UroLift System treatment  may be performed under local or general anesthesia, and you may be given medication to feel comfortable during the treatment. This typically helps minimize discomfort during the procedure, though everyone’s definition for pain and discomfort varies greatly. 
Most common side effects are temporary and can include discomfort when urinating, urgency, inability to control the urge, pelvic pain, and some blood in the urine.² Rare side effects, including bleeding and infection, may lead to a serious outcome and may require intervention. Speak with your doctor to determine if you may be a candidate.⁶

There is minimal downtime post-treatment and many patients experience symptom relief in as early as 2 weeks. The most common side effects may include blood in the urine, some pain or discomfort when urinating, some increased urge to go and discomfort in the pelvis that typically resolve within two to four weeks after the procedure.⁶

Typically, no catheter is required after treatment, however, please discuss this with your urologist prior to your UroLift procedure.^4,6 While Urolift is a  BPH procedure where patients have the chance to go home without a catheter, some patients go home with a small to medium catheter to drain the bladder and help speed up the healing, but most are able to void on their own and do not need a catheter upon discharge.

The implants are intended to be permanent. The implant is made up of standard surgical implantable materials: a nitinol capsular tab, a stainless steel urethral tab, and a polyethylene terephthalate suture that holds the two tabs together. Your doctor can remove the urethral tab, if needed. The suture can be cut and the urethral tab can be retrieved with a standard grasper. The capsular tab and part of the suture will remain in place inside your body.

Clinical studies have shown the UroLift System treatment does not cause new, sustained instances of erectile or ejaculatory dysfunction.*⁵ The only leading BPH procedure shown to not cause sexual dysfunction.*^1,7

As with any surgery, there are risks with the Urolift procedure. The most common risks are persistent BPH symptoms for several weeks following the procedure, blood in the urine, incontinence (inability to control urine), urethral stricture, infection, bladder neck contracture and pelvic pain. Our pivitol study have shown most symptoms are mild to moderate and short term⁴.  
The Urolift procedure does not prevent any future procedures or surgeries to be done on the prostate if ever needed.

Non-clinical testing has demonstrated that the UroLift Implant is MR Conditional. A patient with this device can be safely scanned in an MR system immediately after placement meeting the following conditions:

• Static magnetic field of 3.0 Tesla or less
• Maximum spatial field gradient of 1,500 Gauss/cm (15 T/m) (extrapolated)
• Maximum MR system reported, whole body averaged specific absorption rate (SAR) of 4 W/kg for 15 minutes of continuous scanning (i.e., per pulse sequence) (First Level Controlled Operating Mode)

Under the scan conditions defined above, the UroLift Implant is expected to produce a maximum temperature rise of 2.4°C after 15 minutes of continuous scanning (i.e., per pulse sequence)

In non-clinical testing, the image artifact caused by the device extends approximately 15 mm from the UroLift Implant when imaged with a gradient echo pulse sequence and a 3.0 Tesla MRI system.

The safety of the delivery system has not been evaluated in the MR environment, and therefore, the implant deploying device should not be used within the MR environment.

Patient implant cards are provided to inform the patient that the UroLift implant is MR Conditional and can safely be scanned only under specific MR conditions.

If you have any questions about MRI safety, please consult your doctor.

You can also download the printable version of our patient MRI card.

The implants are not expected to interfere with a DRE. The implants are placed on the anterior (front) side of the prostate, and a DRE is conducted on the posterior (back) side of the prostate.

Most carriers now cover Urolift including Medicare, Anthem, BC/BS, UHC, Aetna and TriCare. Contact your insurance company for more information.

For additional guidance contact the Teleflex Reimbursement Team at 844-516-5966 or by email at uroliftreimbursement@teleflex.com.

The Urolift procedure is a minimally invasive procedures which can be performed as a same day outpatient procedure, including the office setting, under local anesthesia.² Due to Urolift being a minimally invasive procedure, it has rapid symptom relief and recovery⁶

See Treatment Options for more information

Clinical studies with the Urolift procedure have reported durable outcomes out to 5 years. Over the 5 year study, 13.6 of patients underwent a retreatment procedure due to a return of their BPH symptoms.⁴

Replace entire section with: The UroLift™ System is backed by over [145] peer-reviewed publications.

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In our clinical studies, the most common side effects are temporary and can include discomfort when urinating, urgency, inability to control the urge, pelvic pain, and some blood in the urine.⁴ Rare side effects, including bleeding and infection, may lead to a serious outcome and may require intervention.

See the UroLift System Instructions for Use for more information.