Conditions & Treatments

Kidney stones can be extremely painful and typically cause urinary tract infections and damage to the affected kidney.  Symptoms include back pain and / or blood in the urine. A thorough history, examination and scan are required to make the diagnosis. Treatments include surveillance, shock wave therapy or 'key hole' laser surgery termed ureterorenoscopy and laser stone fragmentation. 

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Once stones have been treated investigations looking into why the stones have formed are undertaken. These can sometimes reveal a biochemical abnormality or underlying medical problem which, if treated, can reduce the frequency at which stones form in the future.

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Bladder stones are typically a sign of an underlying bladder emptying problem. They are painful and cause urine infections. A specialist assessment is required to treat the stones promptly before they increase in size and cause complications. 

Urinary symptoms are very common and can be severely debilitating.

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Problems with urinary storage include - urinary frequency (the need to pass urine often during the day), urinary urgency (sudden, compelling desire to pass urine which is difficult to defer), nocturia (the need to pass urine during the night) and urge urinary incontinence (involuntary leakage of urine associated with urinary urgency).

Problems with passing urine include difficulty initiating the flow of urine, passing a slow and intermittent flow, having to strain in order to pass urine, difficulty emptying the bladder and spraying of urine during your flow along with unwanted dribbling at the end or even once finished.

These symptoms can be caused by a range of conditions such as enlargement of the prostate, prostate and bladder cancer, over-active bladder syndrome, urethral stricture disease, urinary tract infections and many others. A careful history, examination and specialist urine flow tests are required to establish the diagnosis. 

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Commonly symptoms in men are caused by a non cancerous growth of the prostate. Treatments offered include diet and lifestyle advice, medications or minimally invasive therapies such as Rezum water vapour therapy, Urolift, robotic Aquablation therapy or prostate artery embolisation. Larger prostates require laser prostate surgery (HoLEP) or a transurethral resection of the prostate.  

Blood in the urine (haematuria) can be a sign of an underlying bladder, kidney prostate or ureteric cancer and requires immediate investigation. Investigations include a scan of the kidneys and bladder as well as a telescopic examination of the bladder called a cystoscopy (performed under local anaesthetic). Typically these procedures can be performed together to provide rapid assessment and diagnosis. Blood in the urine can also be cause by other conditions such as stone disease, infections and inflammation. 

Any amount of bleeding may be significant, even bleeding which is not visible to the naked eye, but has been diagnosed on a urine test (non-visible haematuria). 

Weaker erections, premature ejaculation, penile pain and deformity are common problems. Often these symptoms are under-reported due to their sensitive nature. Erections are dependent on adequate blood flow to the penis. When blood flow is restricted the first organ affected can be the penis. As well as having life changing effects on relationships this problem with blood flow can be the first sign of underlying heart disease. A thorough history and examination are required to understand the cause. Treatments vary from lifestyle modifications to medications. Book an appointment to discuss any concerns you have.

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) in men and women can affect the bladder or kidney. Symptoms of a bladder infection may include pain on urination (dysuria), lower abdominal/suprapubic pain, urinating frequently, passing urine that looks cloudy or smells bad. Sometimes an infection can make you feel unwell and can cause fever. A kidney infection is usually associated with loin pain also and will usually make you feel more unwell. Sometimes an infection can cause blood in the urine (haematuria).

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Some patients can experience recurrent urinary tract infections, which is usually defined as having three or more symptomatic and medically-confirmed infections over a 12 month period. This is more common in women due to the female urethra being much shorter.

Other causes of recurrent infections may include bladder cancer, kidney stones, incomplete bladder emptying due to bladder outflow obstruction or benign prostatic hyperplasia, anatomical abnormalities in the urinary tract, impaired drainage of urine from the kidneys, urinary tract stones, sexual intercourse and having an impaired immune system from conditions such as diabetes.

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There are a range of diet and lifestyle measures which can help reduce the risk of urinary tract infections as well as antibiotic and non antibiotic treatment and prevention strategies. Mr Abboudi is also able to offer the latest advances in UTI management including the new UTI vaccine - Uromune - a simple under the tongue spray. 

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Book an appointment to have a personalised approach to your infections based on the triggers specific to you. 

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Foreskin - painful retraction of the foreskin is termed a phimosis.

Phimosis can be treated by gentle stretching, use of topical steroid ointments or

by a surgical intervention, which may include dorsal slit, preputioplasty or circumcision.

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Testicular lumps - lumps in the testicle can range from testicular cancer to simple non

cancerous swellings such as epididymal cysts or hydroceles.  Examination by a

specialist is paramount to understand the nature of the swelling. 

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Penile problems - lumps and bumps and changes to the skin of the penis are common. 

Conditions such as lichen planus and lichen sclerosis require specific creams to treat. 

Other conditions which affect the shape of the penis such as peyronie's disease

require specialist assessment.