Editorial for Special Issue: "Current and Emerging Therapies for Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms and Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia".

Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) caused by benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) constitute a significant health concern worldwide, particularly among aging male populations [...].

Transforming urinary stone disease management by artificial intelligence-based methods: A comprehensive review.

Objective: To provide a comprehensive review on the existing research and evidence regarding artificial intelligence (AI) applications in the assessment and management of urinary stone disease. Methods: A comprehensive literature review was performed using PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases to identify publications about innovative concepts or supporting applications of AI in the improvement of every medical procedure relating to stone disease. The terms ''endourology'', ''artificial intelligence'', ''machine learning'', and ''urolithiasis'' were used for searching eligible reports, while review articles, articles referring to automated procedures without AI application, and editorial comments were excluded from the final set of publications. The search was conducted from January 2000 to September 2023 and included manuscripts in the English language. Results: A total of 69 studies were identified. The main subjects were related to the detection of urinary stones, the prediction of the outcome of conservative or operative management, the optimization of operative procedures, and the elucidation of the relation of urinary stone chemistry with various factors. Conclusion: AI represents a useful tool that provides urologists with numerous amenities, which explains the fact that it has gained ground in the pursuit of stone disease management perfection. The effectiveness of diagnosis and therapy can be increased by using it as an alternative or adjunct to the already existing data. However, little is known concerning the potential of this vast field. Electronic patient records, containing big data, offer AI the opportunity to develop and analyze more precise and efficient diagnostic and treatment algorithms. Nevertheless, the existing applications are not generalizable in real-life practice, and high-quality studies are needed to establish the integration of AI in the management of urinary stone disease.

Overview of current pharmacotherapeutic options in benign prostatic hyperplasia.

INTRODUCTION: Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) represents the histological entity of prostate cell proliferation, which inflicts a gradually increasing obstruction of the bladder outlet and is accompanied by a progressing manifestation of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). BPH management algorithm includes conservative measures, pharmaceutical agents, and surgical procedures. AREAS COVERED: A comprehensive literature review was performed using PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases to identify publications written in English, analyzing BPH pharmaceutical treatment. The search was conducted from January 2000 to January 2023. Six main drug classes can be administered, either as monotherapy or in combination. Furthermore, the authors provide current direction of research on future medications, which focuses on a more etiological interference to the BPH pathophysiological mechanism. EXPERT OPINION: The available medications represent an effective first-line step of BPH/LUTS therapy. Currently, the administration of BPH medications is tailored to patient/disease characteristics and entails long-time adherence to therapy. The emergence of new surgical modalities, which combine significantly lower morbidity compared to standard procedures and more durable effects than the available medications, seems to challenge the current treatment algorithm. More direct comparisons and the increasing experience with these surgical modalities will delineate the switch points between various therapy levels along the BPH management sequence.

En bloc resection, is this the future of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer management? Presentation of our technique and brief review of the literature.

INTRODUCTION: The quality of the initial transurethral resection of bladder tumors (TURBT) plays a key role in accurate local staging thus affecting treatment decision-making and disease prognosis. TURBT is still the gold standard for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). However, en bloc resection of bladder tumors (ERBT) gradually expanded as a promising alternative to TURBT, aiming to overcome certain inherent limitations of conventional resection. We hereby describe a step-by-step bipolar ERBT technique and briefly review the current trends surrounding the role of various en bloc techniques in the field. CASE PRESENTATION: We present the case of a 65-year old patient undergoing bipolar ERBT for a single, approximately 2 cm, papillary bladder mass. An experienced urologist completed the procedure within 17 min and without any intra- or postoperative complications. No conversion to TURBT was needed, and an adequate specimen for histological assessment was obtained. The patient made an uneventful recovery, and no recurrence was noted at 12-months. CONCLUSION: Our initial experience demonstrates that ERBT via bipolar current is relatively quick, safe, and reliable. Prospective comparative clinical trials will examine its efficacy, and long-term oncological superiority in managing NMIBC.

Concomitant Endoscopic Surgery for Bladder Tumors and Prostatic Obstruction: Are We Safely Hitting Two Birds with One Stone? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) caused by benign prostatic obstruction (BPO) and bladder tumors may co-exist, especially among elderly patients. Transurethral resection of bladder tumors (TURBT) and endoscopic surgery for benign prostatic obstruction in the same setting are avoided by many surgeons due to concerns for tumor cell seeding and recurrences in the prostatic urethra. AIM: The aim of this study was assess the effect of concomitant TURBT and endoscopic BPO surgery on oncological safety and patient quality of life via systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: We searched the PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, Scopus, and Clinicaltrials.gov databases and sources of grey literature published before June 2021 for relevant studies. We performed a random-effects meta-analysis of odds ratios (ORs) or weighted mean differences (WMD) to compare concomitant TURBT and BPO surgery versus TURBT alone in terms of recurrence and progression rates. Accordingly, we undertook multiple subgroups and sensitivity analyses (PROSPERO: CRD42020173363). RESULTS: Three randomized and twelve retrospective observational studies with 2421 participants were included. Across studies with good methodological quality, no statistically significant differences were demonstrated regarding overall bladder tumors recurrence rates between concomitant endoscopic BPO surgery and TURBT versus TURBT alone (OR: 0.81, 95% CI: 0.60-1.09, I2 = 42%). Similarly, no significant differences were observed in recurrences located at the bladder neck and/or prostatic urethra (OR: 1.06, 95% CI: 0.76-1.47, I2 = 0%), time to first recurrence (WMD: -0.2 months, 95% Cl: -2.2-1.8, I2 = 48%), and progression rate (OR: 1.05, 95% CI: 0.67-1.64, I2 = 0%). Subgroup analyses based on tumor grade, number of tumors, and utilization of single-instillation chemotherapy post-TURBT did not detect any significant differences in overall bladder tumor recurrence. The level of evidence was estimated as low for all outcomes. Concomitant surgery improved lower urinary tract symptoms. CONCLUSION: Concomitant endoscopic BPO surgery and TURBT are oncologically safe and improve LUTS-related quality of life.

Jackstone: A Calculus "Toy" in the Bladder. A Case Report of Rare Entity and Comprehensive Review of the Literature.

Background: An uncommon type of urinary calculus, Jackstone was named after its distinct resemblance to the children's game "Jacks." It typically involves the bladder and, to a lesser extent, the upper urinary tract. Case Presentation: Herein, we report a case of Jackstone vesical calculus in a 75-year-old male undergoing elective open prostate surgery for benign prostate hyperplasia refractory to medical treatment. Preoperative clinical examination revealed intermittent gross hematuria and symptoms suggestive of bladder outlet obstruction, while radiological investigation confirmed the presence of a solitary star-shaped spike-like bladder stone along with an overly enlarged prostate. Following open simple prostatectomy and concomitant intact stone removal, our patient made an uneventful postoperative recovery. Conclusion: This case highlights an infrequent subtype of bladder lithiasis and further expands upon the importance of promptly treating the underlying cause once this rare entity is detected. A comprehensive review of the literature on Jackstone calculi is further presented.

Incidental discovery of endourethral clip migration 10 years after radical prostatectomy: A case report and review of the literature.

INTRODUCTION: Surgical clips (SCs) have been widely used for a variety of surgical procedures over the years. Despite their advantages and proven effectiveness, several clip-related complications have been reported, creating dilemmas as to their optimal use. CASE DESCRIPTION: Herein, we present a rare delayed and incidental discovery of two endourethral metallic SCs in a 77-year-old male seeking treatment for acute renal colic. The patient had undergone open radical retropubic prostatectomy 10 years ago, and had an uneventful postoperative recovery. Computed tomography scan revealed left-sided hydronephrosis secondary to proximal ureteral calculus, as well as SCs at the level of vesico-urethral (VUR) anastomosis. Flexible cystoscopy confirmed the imaging findings, showing two endourethral clips, partly obstructing the VUR. Firstly, a serial wire-guided dilation took place, followed by left ureteral double-J stent placement. Unfortunately, the clips could not be concurrently removed due to their firm attachment to the bladder neck. Hence, our patient was scheduled for transurethral resection of the bladder neck and simultaneous endoscopic clip removal. CONCLUSIONS: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report to highlight such a delayed incidental finding, 10 years after open retropubic radical prostatectomy (RRP), during a JJ stent insertion for obstructive uropathy without previous clip-induced lower urinary tract symptoms. Although rare, physicians should be aware of the potential clip-related complications arising either in the short- or long-term postprostatectomy setting.

Global mapping of overviews of systematic reviews in healthcare published between 2000 and 2020: a bibliometric analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To conduct a bibliometric analysis using a large sample of overviews of systematic reviews (OoSRs) and reveal research trends and areas of interest about these studies. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: We searched MEDLINE, Scopus and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews from 1/1/2000 to 15/10/2020. We used Scopus meta-data and two authors recorded supplementary information independently. We summarized the data using frequencies with percentages. RESULTS: A total of 1558 studies were considered eligible for analysis. We found that the publications have been increasing yearly and their nomenclature was not uniform (the most frequent label in the title was "overview of systematic reviews"). The largest number of papers and the most cited ones were published by corresponding authors from the UK. The publications were distributed across 737 scholarly journals and many of them were published in the field of complementary/alternative medicine, psychiatry/psychology, nutrition/dietetics, and pediatrics. The co-authorship analysis revealed collaborations among countries. The most common clinical conditions were depression, diabetes, cancer, dementia, pain, cardiovascular disease, stroke, obesity, and schizophrenia. CONCLUSION: OoSRs have recently become a popular approach of evidence synthesis. International collaborations between overview authors from countries with increased research productivity and countries with less research activity should be encouraged.

Methods for depicting overlap in overviews of systematic reviews: An introduction to static tabular and graphical displays.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: To introduce potential static tabular and graphical techniques for visually presenting overlap between systematic reviews (SRs) included in overviews of systematic reviews (OoSRs). METHODS: The graphical approaches described include Venn and Euler diagrams, as well as matrix-based, node-link, and aggregation-based techniques. We used fundamental concepts of mathematics from set and network theory to develop our novel graphical approaches. The graphical displays were created using R. RESULTS: Overview authors have the flexibility to choose from a variety of visualizations, depending on the characteristics of their study. If the OoSRs include few SRs, a Venn or an Euler diagram can be used. In case of OoSRs with more SRs, Upset plots, heatmaps, and node-link graphs are more appropriate for visualizing overlapping SRs. Stacked bar plots constitute an aggregation-based technique of illustrating overlap. Strengths and limitations of each graphical approach are presented. CONCLUSION: The degree of overlap should be explored for the entire study and for specific outcomes of interest. The proposed graphical techniques may assist methodologists and authors in identifying overlap, which in turn may improve validity and transparency in OoSRs. More research is needed to understand which technique would be most useful and easiest to understand.