As a person ages, there are many changes that take place in his body. In males, one of the most affected parts of the body is the prostate gland. It is a tiny walnut-sized gland that is present around the urethra and is seen just below the urinary bladder. Due to its location, when this gland enlarges, either due to benign prostate hyperplasia or due to prostate cancer, it leads to various symptoms. The most common being difficulty in urination. Thus, to relieve oneself of this situation, there are many surgical options available. One of the surgical options that is gaining popularity is the prostate laser surgery, which is performed with the help of green light laser. Green light laser therapy is a new advancement in the field of prostate surgeries when it comes to partial or total prostatectomies. Given below are the details of this surgery, how it is performed, and what are its advantages. What is Green Light Laser Prostate Surgery? This procedure is performed with the help of a small laser fiber. This laser fiber is inserted into the urethra through a cystoscope, and once it reaches the prostate it delivers high intensity laser light. The heat generated by these laser beams is very high and so, it tends to heat up the prostate tissue due to which it vaporizes. This process is performed till the enlarged prostate tissue that is obstructive in nature is removed or till the entire prostate is removed (depending on whether it is a partial or total prostatectomy). Advantages

• Since this procedure is short, there is no need for the patient to stay overnight in the hospital. Thus, the recovery time is fairly short as compared to the traditional surgery.
• With this prostate surgery option available, there is no need for catheterization. However, in some cases if the patient is very weak, he may need a catheter to help in urine passage. However, this catheter can be removed once the patient is comfortable with passing urine, which is usually within a span of a day or so.
• One of the biggest benefits of this surgery is that people who come with the complaint of an enlarged prostate, get treated almost instantly. This is in contrast to the traditional open surgery, which may require a long time to show results.
• In this procedure, there is barely any loss of blood, therefore, it is the preferred option for people who are very weak or are very old.
• Although there are a few possible side effects of this surgery, they are very mild. There is less than 1% chance of sexual dysfunction or erectile dysfunction after this procedure. This is because unlike an open surgery, in this procedure, the nerves and vessels present around the bladder are not at risk due to the highly precise nature of this surgery.

As is case with any surgical procedure, there are a few possible side effects or after effects of this surgery. These include blood in urine or hematuria, incontinence after prostate surgery, slight burning sensation during urination, and retrograde ejaculation. As there are certain risk factors involved with this surgery, a person should not opt for this procedure only because he has a slightly enlarged and non-cancerous prostate. In such cases it is best to try out other conservative methods of treatment, like watchful waiting and drug therapy.