2. Medication for the Treatment of BPH

Physicians may recommend one type or a combination of medicines for BPH patients in order to stop the growth of the prostate or shrink its size and ease the symptoms of the disease. Alpha blockers are the most common medication for BPH and they work by relaxing the smooth prostate and bladder neck muscles to improve the flow of urine and decrease the bladder blockage. These include terazosin (Hytrin), doxazosin (Cardura), tamsulosin (Flomax), alfuzosin (Uroxatral), and silodosin (Rapaflo). BPH patients may also take phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors for erectile dysfunction, Tadalafil (Cialis) for lower urinary tract, or 5-alpha reductase inhibitors, like finasteride (Proscar) and dutasteride (Avodart), to stop the production of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and consequently prostate growth.

Dr. Frank Nezu talks about enlarged prostates and answers questions about BPH.