No abstract

PurposeTo prospectively compare the diagnostic accuracy of intravesical prostatic protrusion (IPP), detrusor wall thickness (DWT), prostate volume (PV) and serum prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels for detecting bladder outlet obstruction (BOO) and predicting acute urinary retention (AUR) secondary to benign prostatic obstruction.Patients and methodsIn all, 135 men who presented with lower urinary tract symptoms due to benign prostatic enlargement were enrolled in the study; among them, 50 presented with AUR. Thirty normal men in the same age group were included and represented a control group for normative data. Their evaluation included a digital rectal examination, International Prostate Symptom Score and quality-of-life question, uroflowmetry and serum total PSA assay. Transabdominal ultrasonography was used to measure the PV, IPP DWT and post-void residual urine volume. Pressure-flow urodynamic studies were used as the reference standard test for BOO, differentiating obstructed from unobstructed bladders. DWT, IPP, PV and total PSA level served as index tests. To compare the usefulness of the various indices, the area under the curve (AUC) of receiver-operator characteristic curves was calculated for each index.ResultsAccording to presentation and urodynamic studies, patients were classified into three groups: Group 1 (no BOO), 50 patients with a BOO index (BOOI) of <40; group 2 (BOO), 35 with a BOOI of >40; and group 3 (AUR), 50 who presented with AUR. The IPP, DWT, PV and PSA levels differed significantly between obstructed and unobstructed patients, with a significant correlation with the BOOI. The AUC for IPP, DWT, PSA and PV were 0.885, 0.783, 0.745 and 0.678, respectively. The IPP threshold at 8 mm provided the best diagnostic accuracy (80%) for detecting BOO, followed by combined DWT and IPP (77.6%). Between patients with and without AUR, there was a highly significant difference in IPP, DWT and PSA; a combined IPP threshold of >8 mm and DWT >2 mm detected AUR in 45 of 50 patients (90%).ConclusionAll four noninvasive indices were correlated significantly with BOOI. The IPP as a single variable and combined with DWT predicted BOO and AUR better than PSA or PV.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the effect of antisperm antibodies (ASAs), hormonal levels, intratesticular haemodynamics and the surgical approach on the outcomes of varicocelectomy in infertile men, as assessed by seminal variables.Patients and methodsIn a prospective case-series study, 82 infertile men with varicocele (35 left and 47 bilateral) were evaluated. The preoperative assessment included a physical examination, semen analysis, assessment of ASAs in seminal plasma, hormonal levels (follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinising hormone and testosterone), and scrotal colour Doppler ultrasonography (CDUS) to measure the peak systolic velocity (PSV), end diastolic velocity (EDV), resistive index (RI) and pulsatility index. Patients were scheduled for varicocelectomy, with high ligation (Palomo) used in 40 patients (18, 45%, with left and 22, 55%, with bilateral varicocele), or an inguinal approach (Ivanissivich) with loupe magnification used in 42 (17, 40%, with left and 25, 60%, with bilateral varicocele). The men were reassessed at ⩾3 months after surgery and according to the improvement in seminal variables (expressed as a ⩾50% increase in total motile sperm count, TMSC), patients were further categorised into ‘improved’ or ‘unimproved’. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to investigate the predictors of improvement.ResultsBefore surgery the ASAs were positive in 17 men (21%). There was no significant difference between the right and left sides in intratesticular haemodynamics. The TMSC was improved in 52 (63%) patients who had a significant improvement in the haemodynamic variables. Intratesticular haemodynamics, serum FSH and testosterone levels differed significantly between the improved and unimproved patients. Positivity for ASAs, the surgical approach and laterality of the varicocele were not significantly different, although the ASA-positive cases were characterised by a significant decrease in motility. Logistic regression analysis showed that the EDV, PSV, FSH, testosterone level and bilateral testicular volume (BTV) were significant predictors of improvement.ConclusionPositivity for ASAs is not a predictor of the outcome after varicocelectomy but affects only the motile fraction in positive cases, despite the improvement in other seminal variables and testicular haemodynamics, and regardless of the surgical approach. The EDV, PSV, FSH, testosterone and BTV were significant predictors of a successful outcome.

ObjectivesTo objectively assess the functional and cosmetic outcomes of a modified tubularised incised-plate (TIP) urethroplasty (Snodgrass) technique, with particular attention to the uroflowmetry study and Hypospadias Objective Scoring Evaluation (HOSE) score.Patients and methodsIn a prospective case-series study, 43 consecutive patients with primary distal hypospadias were evaluated. The modified Snodgrass technique included an extension of the midline relaxing incision of the urethral plate from within the hypospadiac meatus to the very tip of the glans. The neourethra was tubularised starting at the neomeatus and proceeding proximally. The neourethra was covered with either a single or double dartos flap. In toilet-trained boys, at least 3 months after surgery, the flow pattern, maximum (Qmax), and mean urinary flow rate (Qave) were recorded, and the results plotted against a recently published flow-rate nomogram from normal children. The postvoid residual urine volume was measured using ultrasonography. The cosmetic outcome was assessed using the HOSE system.ResultsThe native meatus was coronal in 11 (26%), subcoronal in 23 (53%) and distal penile in nine (21%) of the patients. The median (range) age was 4.2 (0.5–14) years. The neourethra was covered by a single dorsal dartos flap in 25 and a double dartos flap in 18 patients. At a median (range) follow-up of 6 (3–24) months, the uroflowmetry findings in 26 uncomplicated toilet-trained boys with a median (range) age of 5.2 (3.3–14) years showed an abnormal Qmax below the fifth percentile in four (15%), with the Qave above the fifth percentile in all. The flow pattern was bell-shaped in nine boys (35%), interrupted/intermittent in five (19%), slightly flattened in 10 (39%) and a plateau in two (8%). A vertical slit-like meatus located at the distal glans was created in 39 (91%) boys, and at the proximal glans in four (9%). The urinary stream was single and straight in 39 and angled in four patients. A straight erection was observed in 42 (98%) boys. Four patients had preoperative mild penile torsion of <45°, that was corrected by surgery. The mean (SD, range) HOSE score was 15.8 (0.6, 13–16). Two patients had a small, single subcoronal fistula.ConclusionExtending the midline urethral plate-incision in the modified Snodgrass repair to the apical part of the glans can be done safely with a high rate of locating the neomeatus at the glans tip, with no resultant meatal stenosis. The functional and cosmetic results of the procedure are good, but long-term data and comparative studies are required to confirm these results.

ObjectivesTo evaluate a supracostal approach for percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) of staghorn calculi through a prospective study and review of previously reported cases.MethodsFrom June 2009 to November 2011, 40 patients with staghorn calculi were scheduled for supracostal S-PCNL in a prospective study. Of the 40 renal units, 16 (40%) had a complete staghorn and 24 (60%) had a partial staghorn calculus. Perioperative complications were stratified according to the modified Clavien system. Univariate and multiple logistic regression analyses were used to determine statistically significant variables affecting the stone-free rate and development of complications.ResultsIn all, 57 tracts were established in the 40 renal units; 23 (58%) renal units were approached through one supracostal upper pole calyx, while 13 (33%) and four (10%) required a second middle- or lower-pole puncture, respectively. Overall, 78% of patients were rendered stone-free or had clinically insignificant residual fragments with PCNL monotherapy, and this increased to 88% with auxiliary procedures. In the logistic regression analysis, a complete staghorn stone was the only independent variable for residual stones (P = 0.005). There was an overall complication rate of 38%. Independent variables with an influence on complications were staghorn stone burden (P = 0.007), and operative duration (P = 0.045).ConclusionsThe supracostal upper calyceal approach provides optimum access for the percutaneous removal of staghorn stones. Appropriate attention to the technique and to monitoring before and after surgery can detect thoracic complications, and these can be managed easily with intercostal chest tube drainage, with no serious morbidity.