PERCUTANEOUS ULTRASOUND-GUIDED RADIOFREQUENCY ELECTROCAUTERY ABLATIONOF PROSTATE TISSUE IN DOGS

Rationale and Objectives. We investigated the feasibility of percutane ous radiofrequency (RF) electrocautery in ablation of prostate tissue in dogs. Methods. We used six dogs in whom a specially designed needle was placed percutaneously into the prostate. RF electrocautery was ap plied to the needle and treatment was monitored with ultrasound. Anima ls were sacrificed and gross examination of the prostate and surroundi ng tissues was performed. Histopathologic examinations of the prostate were also performed. Results. The treatment zone appeared as an ellip tical echogenic focus on ultrasound that increased in size with the ap plication of current. Gross and histopathologic correlation demonstrat ed that the treatment area included a central area of char with a surr ounding area of coagulation. There were no deleterious effects to surr ounding tissues. Conclusion. Our results demonstrate the feasibility o f percutaneous ultrasound-guided RF electrocautery ablation of canine prostate tissue.