Urethral stricture after bipolar transurethral resection of prostate – truth vs hype: A randomized controlled trial

Introduction: Bipolar transurethral resection of prostate (B-TURP) was introduced as an alternative procedure to minimize the surgical complications of monopolar TURP (M-TURP). However, there are concerns about increased incidence of stricture urethra (SU) post B-TURP. This study was designed to analyze the incidence of SU among patients undergoing M-TURP versus B-TURP. Materials and Methods: This is a randomized controlled, single-blinded study; randomization was performed using a stratified permuted randomization algorithm (1:1 ratio) and only the patients were blinded. Both M-TURP and B-TURP were performed with a 26 Fr resectoscope; the electrosurgical generators were Karl Storz Autocon II 400 and Olympus UES-40 SurgMaster (TUR in saline [TURIS] method), respectively. Follow-up visits were scheduled at 3, 6, and 12 months post surgery and patients with lower urinary tract symptoms and a maximum urinary flow rate of