News

For men suffering from frequent urination during the day and night, urgency, or difficulty going, you may have Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia or BPH. This condition affects more than 40 million men in the U.S. and we see many men in their 40s, 50s, and older with symptoms of BPH. Though BPH negatively impacts men’s quality of life, suffering is unnecessary. Effective treatment options are available. Join us for a virtual men’s health seminar on Thusday, August 13, at either 11:30 a.m. or 7 p.m. This seminar will share more about BPH treatment options, including the UroLift (R) System, that may help relieve your symptoms.

To register, visit www.UroLift.com/Seminar.

By “Cancer Survivor Al”

Recognizing symptoms, one by one
A deer tick infection, just begun
Set up an appointment with Dr Gus
A blood sample drawn, an identifying must
Results positive, Lyme back in play
Another result, an elevated PSA
A Urologist visit needed, a prostate exam
Biopsy called for, part of a plan
Awaiting results, a bad vibe felt
Early stage cancer, a bad blow dealt
A shot, medication, bringing testosterone down
Then eight weeks of radiation, reason to frown
All things considered, I still feel quite good
Life is a challenge, not always understood
Heart of my Hearts, says I’ll have more good years
For laughing, crying, loving and a few Yuengling beers!

Urology of Central Pennsylvania is now offering the use of Nitrous Oxide for minimal sedation during office procedures, such as vasectomies, prostate biopsies, Rezum, Urolift, and other procedures.

Nitrous oxide or “laughing gas” is a colorless, odorless gas that may be used during procedures for relaxation and anxiety relief. It is opioid-free, narcotic-free and is non-addictive. Patients utilizing our new minimal sedation Nitrous Oxide service will not require a driver and may drive themselves home following the procedure.

Minimal sedation with Nitrous Oxide is not covered by insurance. Patients who are interested in having Nitrous Oxide during their procedure must sign a consent form and an Advance Beneficiary Notice (ABN) and pay out-of-pocket for the service. Minimal sedation Nitrous Oxide services are available at both the Harrisburg and Camp Hill UCPA locations.

To learn more about our new Nitrous Oxide services and any associated costs, please call our offices at (717) 724-0720 (Harrisburg) or (717) 763-1174 (Camp Hill).

Working with MicroGen DX, Urology of Central PA now proudly offers a fast, accurate and comprehensive diagnostic test to identify microbes causing chronic urological infections. The two-part test extracts DNA from patient samples and compares it to a database of more than 25,000 species to accurately identify offending microbes. Armed with this new information, our physicians make the most appropriate treatment decisions, resulting in better outcomes and faster pain relief.

Since 1880, the predominate diagnostic tool for identifying microbes has been via traditional cultures that attempt to grow the microbes in a laboratory setting. Unfortunately, testing has identified that less than 1% of microbes grow in cultures, inhibiting proper diagnoses and extending healing time.

UCPA’s work with MicroGen DX Labs provides superior diagnostics with the new two-part test. First, UCPA’s lab will perform an initial urology PCR test to identify the most common bacteria in the infection. Second, a follow-up test called Next-Generation DNA Sequencing (NGS) will identify bacteria and/or fungus that were not found in the initial panel and may be contributing to the urological infection. Advancements in genomic testing provide 99.9% accuracy in the detection of all microbes within a urological infection for targeted treatment decisions.

Testing is easy. Our staff will collect a urine sample at our offices and run it through rapid detection. Our physicians will then determine whether the sample should be sent to the MicroGen DX Laboratory for the NGS test. Test results should be returned in approximately 3 – 5 business days.

Patient costs for the two-part test may vary depending on patient insurance.

If you are dealing with chronic urological infections, please ask your UCPA physician about the new MicroGen DX test. For questions, call our offices at 717-724-0720 or 717-763-1174.

With the best interest of our community and families in mind, ZERO – The End of Prostate Cancer and UCPA will hold a virtual celebration in Harrisburg this year.  The 2020 ZERO Prostate Cancer Event will be held on Friday, September 25th as scheduled.

Further details and information about the event will be shared as they become available. Thank you for your support and we look forward to creating a fun, informative and interactive event to honor our prostate cancer patients and community.

Urology of Central PA reopened our Ambulatory Surgery Center on May 4, with a careful approach to ensure we follow all PA Department of Health and CDC guidelines.

Almost two months ago, we asked you to discuss delaying elective medical and surgical care with your urologist during the COVID-19 threat. Today, we are requesting that you speak with your urologist about resuming your normal care and procedures at UCPA.

At UCPA, we are making every effort to ensure the safety of our staff and patients with some additional protocols in place.

SAFE Approach at UCPA:
Safety protocols: We’ve expanded use of personal protective equipment – for both patients and providers. All of our staff and providers will be wearing masks and following CDC-recommended hand hygiene protocols. We ask that our patients wear masks into the clinic.
Adapting to new ways to treat patients. We will continue to offer telemed/telehealth.
Facility changes – we’ll create more space in the waiting room, fewer patients in the practice at any given day/time, extensive cleaning and sanitation protocols are in place.
Entry into the clinic – everyone will be screened prior to entry.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation as we work to keep everyone safe!

New guidelines from Governor Tom Wolf shared on Sunday, April 19, include direction for patients and caregivers to wear masks when in public places, such as healthcare providers’ offices.

UCPA is following these guidelines and requests that all visitors to our offices wear masks.

For more information on the guidelines, please visit https://www.pa.gov/guides/responding-to-covid-19/#UniversalMasking.

The physicians and staff of UCPA are committed to providing our patients with safe and effective urologic care.  During this time of national emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic we continue to be thoughtful in our clinical decisions when meeting the clinical care needs of our patients. 

We are understanding of the unique needs of each individual patient and count on our patients to be active participants in their care.

In light of the COVID-19 situation, UCPA has successfully transitioned our patient appointments to video appointments. Telemedicine/Telehealth has been around for a while but has become widely used in the last couple of weeks and covered by all insurances.