(294) Trends and Clinical Practice Patterns of Prostatic Urethral Lift (PUL): An Analysis of the American Board of Urology Case Logs

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Prior studies have shown that among benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) surgical treatments, PUL has a higher likelihood of preserving sexual function. As a result, the 2021 AUA guidelines on management of BPH note that PUL may be offered as a treatment option to those eligible patients who desire preservation of erectile and ejaculatory function. Objective We investigated practice trends associated with PUL utilization and hypothesized that PUL would be performed more frequently for younger patients and by urologists subspecializing in andrology (infertility and/or sexual medicine). Methods We obtained de-identified, self-reported American Board of Urology (ABU) case logs from 2015-2021. We identified 4,131 urologists who performed 48,610 surgeries with an indication for BPH per ICD codes. CPT codes distinguished PUL from transurethral incision, electrosurgical resection, laser coagulation/vaporization, laser enucleation, and thermotherapy. We identified 786 urologists who performed 7,895 PUL procedures representing 19.2% of all BPH surgeries. Additionally, 24 urologists only performed PUL, and 3,345 urologists did not perform any PUL. A logistic regression model assessed factors independently associated with performing PUL. Results The number of annual PUL performed has ranged from 101 to 2,852, comprising an increasing proportion of BPH surgeries from an initial 1.6% in 2015 to 32.5% of all BPH surgeries performed in 2020. In adjusted analyses, factors associated with higher odds of performing PUL included subspecialization in andrology (odds ratio [OR] 4.01, 95% CI 1.94-8.29); practice area population >1,000,000 (OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.01-2.38); and government (OR 4.22, 95% CI 1.83-9.74), private practice group (OR 2.68, 95% CI 1.53-4.68), and salaried hospital employment (OR 1.94, 95% CI 1.00-3.96). The operative year (OR 1.66 per year, 95% CI 1.54-1.80) and surgeon BPH surgical volume (OR 1.02 per case increase, 95% CI 1.01-1.02) were associated with increased odds of performing PUL. Endourology subspecialization was associated with lower odds of PUL (OR 0.40, 95% CI 0.2-0.8). Geographic region, surgeon age, surgeon gender, certification vs recertification status, and patient age were not associated with use of PUL. Conclusions Based on 7 years of ABU case log data, PUL is more likely to be performed by andrologists, urologists practicing in large metropolitan areas, higher volume BPH surgeons, and urologists in private practice group, government, or hospital salaried employment. Contrary to our hypothesis, lower patient age was not associated with a higher odds of undergoing PUL. The use of PUL has increased significantly and currently comprises one third of all BPH surgeries. More study is needed to determine the extent to which patient demand for ejaculation preservation is driving the rapid adoption of PUL reflected in the ABU case logs. Disclosure No