EVALUATING THE EFFICACY, SAFETY, AND COST OF LASERS FOR THE TREATMENTOF BENIGN PROSTATIC HYPERPLASIA

This review highlights some of the caveats assessing the available cli nical data base for determining the efficacy, safety, and cost of lase r systems used to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia. Many new minimal ly invasive devices have recently been advanced in spite of the limite d data base and the lack of properly designed clinical trials. There h ave been many claims regarding the effectiveness of laser prostatectom y based on the available clinical data. Some important general conside rations for interpreting the clinical data base, critically analyzing the study design, and interpreting the data are discussed. Similarly, many claims have been made with respect to the cost of laser prostatec tomy; however, insufficient objective data are available for clear det erminations of cost. Some of the pertinent issues involved in the cost assessment of laser prostatectomy are also highlighted. It is hoped t hat this review will provide the reader with some additional insight i nto the critical assessment of the quality of studies that evaluate th e safety, efficacy, and cost of new devices such as the laser.