Improved stone quality of life in patients with an obstructing ureteral stone on alpha-blocker medical expulsive therapy.

PURPOSE: Though controversial, alpha blockers are used widely for ureteral stone passage. However, its effects on the patient-reported Quality of life (QOL) is unknown. We compared the QoL of patients on alpha-blocker medical expulsive therapy (MET) to patients not on MET (noMET) utilizing the validated Wisconsin Stone Quality of Life (WISQOL). METHODS: This prospective study included patients prescribed either MET or noMET after presentation with symptomatic, obstructing ureteral stones. The treatment arm was decided at the point of care by the initial treating physician and included analgesia and antiemetics. Tamsulosin (0.4 mg daily) was prescribed for the MET group. The WISQOL survey was administered at baseline, 7-, 14-, 21- and 28-days following discharge from the ED or until stone expulsion. RESULTS: 197 patients were enrolled, of which 116 (59.2%) completed questionnaires for analysis, 91 in the MET group and 25 in noMET. Average ureteral stone size was 4.7 mm (SD 1.8) and 3.1 mm (SD 1.0) for MET and noMET, respectively. Of completed surveys, 105 (90%) were completed at day 7, 67 (57.6%) at day 14, 53 (45.7%) at day 21, and 40 (34.5%) at day 28. MET was associated with improved QoL scores across all WISQOL domains compared to noMET. Stone size, age, race, sex, comorbidity score and a prior stone history were not associated with reduced QoL. CONCLUSIONS: The use of MET was associated with improved QOL on all WISQOL metrics compared to noMET patients. Improved stone QOL may be an indication of alpha-blocker therapy in patients with ureteral stone colic.

Proposal to decrease incidence, morbidity, and associated healthcare costs regarding difficult and traumatic urethral catheterization - a protocol for DMC hospitals: A pilot study.

INTRODUCTION: Difficult and traumatic urethral catheterization is a common reason for urologic consult. Catheter insertion and management is common for patients who are managed in the hospital setting. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A four-question survey was distributed across three hospitals at a single-institution. RESULTS: A total of 41 nursing staff responses were recorded. Forty-four percent of the nursing staff reported prior participation in a traumatic catheter insertion. Ninety percent of total responders reported a prior involvement with a difficulty catheter. CONCLUSION: Patient morbidity and healthcare costs regarding traumatic and difficult catheterization is significant. Utility of protocols and education could potentially reduce these burdens and enhance patient care.

An analysis of post-operative pain and narcotic use following robotic assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy for same day discharge.

Robotic assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) has become the primary surgical modality in the treatment of prostate cancer. Most patients are discharged on postoperative day one. Same-day discharge is emerging as a potential new standard. We sought to establish factors correlating with post-operative pain after RALP procedures to design a same-day discharge protocol. We retrospectively reviewed 150 of recently performed RALP procedures from March 2020 to January 2021. Patient demographics and intra-operative variables were compared to Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) pain scores and total morphine milliequivalents (MME) at 2 h, 8 h, and averaged over the patient's admission post-operatively or first 48 h, whichever occurred first. We performed univariable and multivariable logistic regression to assess correlations with postoperative pain and narcotic use. NRS average > 3 or any MME given at 2 h postoperatively was significantly associated with continued post-operative pain averaged over admission (rs = 0.32, 0.38, respectively; p < 0.001). MME given was also associated with longer operative time and negative related to body mass index. No other demographic data or intraoperative variables such as diabetes or pneumoperitoneum pressure were correlated with worsened post-operative pain scores > 3 or narcotic use. Local bupivacaine dose was also not associated with improved post-operative pain scores or narcotic use at 8 h (p = 0.98, 0.13). These findings suggest that patients with adequate postoperative pain control at 2 hours may be discharged same day from a pain control perspective. Further clinical evaluation regarding the role of local anesthetic use in RALPs is warranted.

Comparison of single-port and multi-port Retzius-sparing robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy.

Dissemination of robotic surgical technology for robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) has yielded advancements including the Retzius-sparing (RS) approach and the single-port (SP) platform. The safety and feasibility of each individual advancement have been evaluated, yet there is a lack of literature comparing SP RS-RALP to conventional multi-port (MP) RS-RALP. All patients who underwent RS-RALP at our institution between January 2019 and February 2021 were retrospectively reviewed. Data regarding baseline patient and tumor characteristics, operative characteristics, and surgical outcomes were collected and analyzed using the Fisher's exact test and two-tailed unpaired t tests. 62 patients were evaluated: 31 received SP RS-RALP and 31 received MP RS-RALP. Differences in patient age, BMI, and initial PSA were not observed. Lower median lymph node yield (SP: 4 vs MP: 12, p < 0.01), lower estimated blood loss (SP: 111.2 vs. MP 157.8 mL, p < 0.01), shorter operative time (SP: 207.7 vs. MP: 255.9 min, p < 0.01) and decreased length of stay (SP: 0.39 vs. MP: 1.23 days, p < 0.01) were observed in the SP RS-RALP cohort. No differences in positive surgical margins, complications, or biochemical recurrence rates were observed. SP RS-RALP is non-inferior to MP RS-RALP in terms of both perioperative and early oncologic outcomes. Despite the small sample size, the SP platform is a safe and feasible option for RS-RALP and confers potential benefits in the form of shorter operative time and reduced length of stay.

Feasibility and safety of same-day discharge following single-port robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy.

PURPOSE: The standard discharge pathway following robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) involves overnight hospital admission. Models for same-day discharge (SDD) have been explored for multiport RALP, however, less is known regarding SDD for single-port RALP, especially in terms of patient experience. METHODS: Patient enrollment, based on preoperative determination of potential SDD eligibility, commenced March 2020 and ended March 2021. Day-of-surgery criteria were utilized to determine which enrolled patients underwent SDD. Differences in preoperative characteristics and perioperative outcomes between patients undergoing SDD and patients undergoing standard discharge were evaluated. A prospectively administered questionnaire was designed to characterize patient-centered factors informing SDD perception. RESULTS: Fifteen patients underwent SDD and 36 underwent standard discharge. Overall mean ± SD age and BMI were 63.6 ± 7.0 years and 29.7 ± 4.4 kg/m2, respectively. Mean operative time was shorter in the SDD cohort than the standard discharge cohort (188 min vs 217 min, p = 0.011). A higher proportion of cases that underwent SDD were performed using the Retzius-sparing approach, 80% (12/15) vs 33% (12/36) in the standard discharge cohort (p = 0.005). Rates of 90 day complication (p = 0.343), 90 day readmission (p = 0.144), and 90 day emergency department visits (p = 0.343) rates were all not significantly different between cohorts. Of questionnaire respondents undergoing standard discharge, 32% (8/25) cited pain as a reason for not undergoing SDD. CONCLUSIONS: With comparable outcomes to the standard discharge pathway, SDD is safe and effective in single-port RALP. Post-operative pain and perceptions of distance are implicated as patient-centered barriers to SDD; proactive pain management and patient education strategies may facilitate SDD.

Role of the androgen, estrogen, and progesterone receptors in adherent perinephric fat in robotic partial nephrectomy.

To determine whether androgen, estrogen, and/or progesterone signaling play a role in the pathophysiology of adherent perinephric fat (APF). We prospectively recruited patients undergoing robotic assisted partial nephrectomy during 2015-2017. The operating surgeon documented the presence or absence of APF. For those with clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), representative sections of tumor and perinephric fat were immunohistochemically stained with monoclonal antibody to estrogen α, progesterone, and androgen receptors. Patient characteristics, operative data, and hormone receptor presence were compared between those with and without APF. Of 51 patients total, 18 (35.3%) and 33 (64.7%) patients did and did not have APF, respectively. APF was associated with history of diabetes mellitus (61.1% vs 24.2%, p = 0.009) and larger tumors (4.0 cm vs 3.0 cm, p = 0.017) but not with age, gender, BMI, Charleston comorbidity index, smoking, or preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate. APF was not significantly associated with length of operation, positive margins, or 30-day postoperative complications but incurred higher estimated blood loss (236.5 mL vs 209.2 mL, p = 0.049). Thirty-two had ccRCC and completed hormone receptor staining. The majority of tumors and perinephric fat were negative for estrogen and progesterone while positive for androgen receptor expression. There was no difference in hormone receptor expression in either tumor or perinephric fat when classified by presence or absence of APF (p > 0.05). APF is more commonly present in patients with diabetes or larger tumors but was not associated with differential sex hormone receptor expression in ccRCC.

Factors Associated With Corporoglandular Shunting for Patients With First-time Ischemic Priapism.

OBJECTIVE: To establish predictive factors of patients who failed intra-cavernosal injection therapy and ultimately required corporoglandular shunting during first-time ischemic priapism episodes. METHODS: A retrospective review was performed of all patients over the age of 18 who presented to our institution with first-time episode of ischemic priapism from 2009 to 2019. Variables assessed included: body mass index, diabetes, hypertension, race, insurance-type, hypertension, etiology, age, duration of erection prior to evaluation, total amount of phenylephrine injected, and use of corporal irrigation. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was performed utilizing duration of erection and amount of phenylephrine. RESULTS: One-hundred and forty-seven patients met inclusion criteria of which 24 patients required surgical intervention. There were differences associated with mean total phenylephrine used, duration of erection between shunted patients and non-shunted patients with regards to age (P = .38) or etiology (P = .81). Multivariable analysis revealed differences between duration of erection and BMI greater than 25 kg/m2. ROC curve analyses revealed total amount of phenylephrine injected and duration of erection were acceptable and excellent predictors of need for shunt procedures with area under the curves of 0.72 and 0.90, respectively. Optimal cut-off values for each were found to be 950 mcg and 15.5 hours. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that patients who require greater than 950 mcg of total phenylephrine or present with erections lasting greater than 15.5 hours are significantly more likely to require corporoglandular shunting and should be counseled appropriately as such.

Initial Experience with Single-Port Robot-Assisted Radical Cystectomy: Comparison of Perioperative Outcomes Between Single-Port and Conventional Multiport Approaches.

Background: The surgical techniques and devices used to perform radical cystectomy have evolved significantly with the advent of laparoscopic and robotic methods. The da Vinci® Single-Port (SP) platform (Intuitive Surgical, Inc., Sunnyvale, CA) is an innovation that allows a surgeon to perform robot-assisted radical cystectomy (RARC) through a single incision. To determine if this new tool is comparable to its multiport (MP) predecessors, we reviewed a single-surgeon experience of SP RARC. Materials and Methods: We identified patients at our institution who underwent RARC between August 2017 and June 2020 by one surgeon at our institution (n = 64). Using propensity scoring analysis, patients whose procedure were performed with the SP platform (n = 12) were matched 1:2 to patients whose procedure was performed with the MP platform (n = 24). Univariable analysis was performed to identify differences in any perioperative outcome, including operative time, estimated blood loss (EBL), lymph node yield, 90-day complication/readmission rates, and positive surgical margin (PSM) rates. Results: Patients who had an SP RARC on average had a lower lymph node yield than those who had an MP RARC (11.9 vs 17.1, p = 0.0347). All other perioperative outcomes, including operative time, EBL, 90-day complication rates, 90-day readmission rates, and PSM rates, were not significantly different between the SP and MP RARC groups. Conclusions: Based on their perioperative outcomes, the SP platform is a feasible alternative to the MP platform when performing RARC. The SP's perioperative outcomes should continue to be evaluated as more SP RARCs are performed.

Safety of retrograde pyelography for infected ureteral stones.

INTRODUCTION: Initial management of obstructing ureteral stones with concomitant urinary tract infection (UTI) includes prompt renal decompression and antibiotics. Some urologists theorize that performing retrograde pyelography (RGP) at the time of ureteral stent placement may cause pyelovenous backflow of bacteria thereby worsening clinical outcomes. We compared outcomes in patients with infected ureteral stones who underwent RGP versus no RGP prior to stent placement. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective chart review was conducted involving patients who presented between 2015 and 2017 with an obstructing ureteral stone and associated UTI. Computed tomography scans were evaluated for stone size and location. Operative reports were reviewed to determine whether the patient underwent RGP at time of ureteral stent placement. Demographics, perioperative information, intensive care unit (ICU) admission rate, and length of stay (LOS) were compared. RESULTS: Seventy-two patients were identified and stratified by severity of condition at presentation, including UTI without sepsis (n = 18), sepsis (n = 32), severe sepsis (n = 11), and septic shock (n = 11). Forty-three patients underwent RGP at the time of stent placement, and 29 did not. Between both patient cohorts, statistical analysis revealed no significant difference in postoperative ICU admission rate (p = 0.35) or LOS for patients with UTI without sepsis (p = 0.17), sepsis (p = 0.45), severe sepsis (p = 0.66), and septic shock (p = 0.25). CONCLUSION: The use of RGP prior to ureteral stent placement for an obstructing ureteral stone with concomitant UTI was not associated with unfavorable clinical outcomes in our retrospective series. While these findings support the safety of RGP in this setting, prospective trials are warranted.