Polyscope: A New Era in Flexible Ureterorenoscopy

Abstract

Minimally invasive techniques are preferred for treatment of renal stones. The problem of lower caliceal stone access has been solved with the primary and secondary deflection of modern flexible ureteroscopes. The modular design of polyscope makes it a more cost-effective option. Relatively cheap and disposable multilumen catheters preclude the need for sterilization of optic cable, thus decreasing the chances of handling-related damages. The chance of instrument-related infection is minimal. Besides, it can be used as a semirigid ureteroscope should the need arises.

URS Konusunda Teknolojik Gelişmeler

“…Bu nedenlerle son zamanlarda tek kullanımlık fleksibl URS'ler üretilmiştir. İlk üretilen tek kullanımlık fleksibl üreteroskop Polyscope'dur (19). Bu cihaz, tekrar kullanıla-bilir bir optik kablo, bir ışık kablosu, çalışma kanalı ve bir kumanda mekanizması ile birlikte kanalları olan tek kullanımlık multilümen endoskopik bir kateterden oluşmaktadır (Resim 4).…”

“…Bu cihaz, tekrar kullanıla-bilir bir optik kablo, bir ışık kablosu, çalışma kanalı ve bir kumanda mekanizması ile birlikte kanalları olan tek kullanımlık multilümen endoskopik bir kateterden oluşmaktadır (Resim 4). Polyscope ile yapılan ilk sonuçlar, cihazın teşhis ve terapötik URS için güvenli ve etkili olduğunu, üriner taşların 3 cm'ye kadar olan kısmının tedavisi de dahil olmak üzere önerilebileceğini göstermektedir (19)(20)(21)(22). Maliyeti düşürmek için tek kullanımlık fleksibl URS'lerin tekrar steril edilerek de kullanılabileceği bildirilmiştir (21).…”

Innovations in surgical stone disease

“…The first single-use flexible ureteroscope was the Polyscope. This device was composed of a disposable multilumen endoscopic catheter with channels for a reusable optic cable, a light cord, a working channel and a steering mechanism [26]. The initial results with the Polyscope suggested the device was safe and effective for diagnostic and therapeutic URS including for the treatment of urinary calculi up to 3 cm, however, the biggest disadvantage was the unidirectional deflection [27][28][29].…”

Catheter-based intraluminal optical coherence tomography of the normal human upper urinary tract in vivo: proof of concept and comparison with an ex-vivo porcine model

“…However, despite recent technical advancement in retrograde flexible ureteroscopy, such as increased flexibility [1,2], digitization [1,3], narrow-band imaging [3], miniaturization of instruments, and modular concepts for ancillary equipment [4], that now permit access to the entire renal pelvicocaliceal system [1,3], improve lesion detection [3], decrease the risk of infection, and make maintenance both safer for the endoscope and less expensive [4], endoscopy is still limited to surface views of the urothelium and its pathologies. Cross-sectional imaging on the other hand reliably provides information on tissue status around the UUT [5,6], but fails to distinguish between different histological wall layers.…”