Urology

Answer 1 Explain that this is a common side effect but ejaculatory volume will not likely change with continued therapy. α-Adrenergic antagonists are predominantly used in the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia. Tamsulosin, a selective α1A-adrenoreceptor antagonist, is associated with retrograde ejaculation in approximately 5% to 10% of patients. This side effect is reversible when therapy is stopped. Although this is a benign condition, the effect is not self-limited and ejaculatory volume will remain low throughout treatment. Patients should be counseled about potential side effects before initiating treatment. There is some evidence that intermittent (once every other day) dosing may improve retrograde ejaculation in patients who report no change in their ejaculatory volume.¹ This improvement, however, was not found in patients with low volume or absent ejaculate. REFERENCES 1. Goktas S, Kibar Y, Kilic S, et al. Recovery of abnormal ejaculation by intermittent tamsulosin treatment. J Urol 2006;175:650–3. Click here to return to the questions

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