First Surgical Woodlands Texas US

According to the National Kidney Foundation, kidney and urologic diseases affect at least 5% of the American population (13 million people). As the population ages, these conditions are expected to increase, especially among ethnic minorities who have a disproportionate share of urologic diseases.

Urology is a medical specialty that focuses on treating diseases and disorders of the urinary tract of both men and women, including the bladder, kidneys, ureter, and often extends to other areas of the pelvis. In addition, urology is a specialty concerned with treating the male reproductive system specifically, addressi8ng diseases and disorders of the prostate, testes and penis. However, it is not uncommon for a urology to encompass gynecological organs and complaints. A surgeon who specializes in this discipline is called a Urologist. While not all surgical facilities encompass this discipline, First Surgical Woodlands includes this surgical sub-specialty.

Urologic surgery typically treats obstructions, dysfunction, malignancies and inflammatory diseases. Because we are an out patient facility and do not perform surgeries of higher acuity, our urology department may address such operations as:

Typically, these procedures are performed laparoscopically, a method by which the surgeon uses several small incisions rather than one or more larger incisions. The smaller incisions allow for the insertion of a tiny camera and delicate surgical tools into the area of the surgical site. Essentially, the surgeon performs the surgery "within" the patient, rather than opening the surgical site, as was commonplace just a few years ago. Until the late twentieth century, urological operations usually involved open abdominal surgery with full incision, lengthy hospital stays, and long recovery periods. Today, surgery is less traumatic, with shortened hospitalizations. Minimally invasive surgeries are the norm in many cases, with new laparoscopic procedures developed each year.

Enlarged prostate (benign prostate hyperplasia, or BPH) is very common, and often treated with surgery.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer affecting males in the United States. One in 10 men will have the disease at some time in his life. It is, however, treated successfully with surgery.

According to the Urological Foundation, more than 50,000 new cases of bladder cancer are detected each year. In the United States, bladder cancer is the fourth most common cancer in men and the ninth most common for women.

Kidney cancer occurs in 30,000 patients per year, with about 11,000 deaths. It is the eighth most common cancer in men and the tenth most common cancer in women.

Many urological diseases can be dealt with through diet, weight loss, and lifestyle changes. These modifications are especially significant in preventing and treating conditions of the urinary tract. Obesity and nutrition play a significant role in urologic diseases, and impact many urologic cancers, inflammatory and ulcerative conditions, incontinence, and sexual dysfunction.

Medical interventions are another form of treatment, particularly for infectious and inflammatory urologic conditions. They are particularly useful along with special adjunctive surgical procedures for the treatment of incontinence and painful bladder and kidney conditions. While many cancers must be treated surgically, prostate cancer is often treated with a "wait and see" approach due to its slow rate of growth. There is an increasing trend for men with slow-growing prostate cancers to have regular check-ups instead of immediate treatment.

Urology Surgery