Norvic Hospital of Kathmandu has claimed to have conducted the first successful prostate surgery using Holmium Laser Technology in the country.

A team of Norvic doctors operated on Sharad Kumar Shrestha of Birtamod in Jhapa, who had a prostate (benign enlargement of prostate, grade IV) of 400 grams removed after a two and a half hour surgery on Saturday.

Consultant Urologist Dr Bharat Bahadur Bhandari performed the operation with the support from Senior Consultant Physician and Cardiologist Dr JP Jaiswal and Consultant Anaesthesiologist Dr Nagendra KC. Shrestha was suffering from burning sensation while urinating for a long time. He was diagnosed with hypertension, diabetes mellitus and coronary artery disease, the hospital said in a statement. The laser surgery is less painful, safer and much faster with high rate of recovery and needs less blood transfusion compared to the open surgeries. A patient treated with the technology can even be discharged in two to three days of surgery.

Shrestha’s blood sugar level now is normal along with all his vital organs. “The symptoms have subsided and I feel no pain at all,” said Shrestha, who was released from the hospital on Wednesday.