Persistent Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms After BPH Surgery.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) after surgical management for BPH pose a significant clinical challenge for urologists. Despite high success rates in relieving LUTS, there is a subset of patients who experience persistent symptoms after intervention. In this review article, we describe the management of patients with new or persistent LUTS after endoscopic bladder outlet surgery. RECENT FINDINGS: Previously, the goal for BPH management was to remove as much adenomatous tissue as possible. While potentially effective, this may lead to unwanted side effects. There has been a recent paradigm shift for new minimally invasive surgical therapies (MIST) that strategically treat adenomatous tissue, adding potential complexity in managing patients with new or residual symptoms in the postoperative setting. There is a paucity of literature to guide optimal workup and care of patients with persistent LUTS after surgical management. We characterize patients into distinct groups, defined by types of symptoms, irritative versus obstructive, and timing of the symptomatology, short term versus long term. By embracing this patient-centered approach with shared decision management, clinicians can optimize outcomes efficiently improving their patients' quality of life.

Daily Ecological Momentary Assessments of Pain and Ability to Work After Ureteroscopy and Stenting.

Introduction: Ureteral stents can cause significant patient discomfort, yet the temporal dynamics and impact on activities remain poorly characterized. We employed an automated tool to collect daily ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) regarding pain and the ability to work following ureteroscopy with stenting. Our aims were to assess feasibility and better characterize the postoperative patient experience. Materials and Methods: As an exploratory endpoint within an ongoing clinical trial, patients undergoing ureteroscopy with stenting were asked to complete daily EMAs for 10 days postoperatively or until the stent was removed. Questionnaires were distributed through text messages and included a pain scale (0-10) and a single item from the validated Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Ability to Participate in Social Roles and Activities instrument, as well as days missed from work or school. Results: Among the first 65 trial participants, 59 completed at least 1 EMA (overall response rate 91%). Response rates were >85% for each time point through postoperative day (POD)10. Median respondent age was 58 years (interquartile range [IQR] 50-67), and 56% were female. Stones were 54% renal and 46% ureteral, with a median diameter of 9 mm (IQR 7-10). Median stent dwell time was 7 days (IQR 6-8). Pain scores were highest on POD1 (median score 4) and declined on each subsequent day, reaching a median score of 2 on POD5. Sixty-three percent of patients on POD1 reported that they had trouble performing their usual work at least sometimes, but by POD5, this was <50% of patients. Patients who work or attend school reported a median of 1 day missed (IQR 0-2). Conclusions: An automated daily EMA system for capturing patient-reported outcomes was demonstrated to be feasible with sustained excellent engagement. Patients with stents reported the worst pain and interference with work on POD1, with steady improvements thereafter, and by POD5, the majority of patients had minimal pain or trouble performing their usual work. This work is associated with a registered clinical trial [NCT05026710].

MicroSegNet: A deep learning approach for prostate segmentation on micro-ultrasound images.

Micro-ultrasound (micro-US) is a novel 29-MHz ultrasound technique that provides 3-4 times higher resolution than traditional ultrasound, potentially enabling low-cost, accurate diagnosis of prostate cancer. Accurate prostate segmentation is crucial for prostate volume measurement, cancer diagnosis, prostate biopsy, and treatment planning. However, prostate segmentation on micro-US is challenging due to artifacts and indistinct borders between the prostate, bladder, and urethra in the midline. This paper presents MicroSegNet, a multi-scale annotation-guided transformer UNet model designed specifically to tackle these challenges. During the training process, MicroSegNet focuses more on regions that are hard to segment (hard regions), characterized by discrepancies between expert and non-expert annotations. We achieve this by proposing an annotation-guided binary cross entropy (AG-BCE) loss that assigns a larger weight to prediction errors in hard regions and a lower weight to prediction errors in easy regions. The AG-BCE loss was seamlessly integrated into the training process through the utilization of multi-scale deep supervision, enabling MicroSegNet to capture global contextual dependencies and local information at various scales. We trained our model using micro-US images from 55 patients, followed by evaluation on 20 patients. Our MicroSegNet model achieved a Dice coefficient of 0.939 and a Hausdorff distance of 2.02 mm, outperforming several state-of-the-art segmentation methods, as well as three human annotators with different experience levels. Our code is publicly available at https://github.com/mirthAI/MicroSegNet and our dataset is publicly available at https://zenodo.org/records/10475293.

Real-world Practice Stone-free Rates After Ureteroscopy: Variation and Outcomes in a Surgical Collaborative.

BACKGROUND: Studies assessing the stone-free rate (SFR) after ureteroscopy are limited to expert centers with varied definitions of stone free. Real-world data including community practices related to surgeon characteristics and outcomes are lacking. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the SFR for ureteroscopy and its predictors across diverse surgeons in Michigan. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: We assessed the Michigan Urological Surgery Improvement Collaborative (MUSIC) clinical registry for patients with renal or ureteral stones treated with ureteroscopy between 2016 and 2021 who had postoperative imaging. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Stone free was defined as no fragments on imaging reports within 60 d entered by independent data abstractors. Factors associated with being stone free were examined using logistic regression, including annual surgeon volume. We then assessed variation in surgeon-level SFRs adjusted for risk factors. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: We identified 6487 ureteroscopies from 164 surgeons who treated 2091 (32.2%) renal and 4396 (67.8%) ureteral stones. The overall SFRs were 49.6% (renal) and 72.7% (ureteral). Increasing stone size, lower pole, proximal ureteral location, and multiplicity were associated with not being stone free. Female gender, positive urine culture, use of ureteral access sheath, and postoperative stenting were associated with residual fragments when treating ureteral stones. Adjusted surgeon-level SFRs varied for renal (26.1-72.4%; p < 0.001) and ureteral stones (52.2-90.2%; p < 0.001). Surgeon volume was not a predictor of being stone free for renal stones. Limitations include the lack of imaging in all patients and use of different imaging modalities. CONCLUSIONS: The real-world complete SFR after ureteroscopy is suboptimal with substantial surgeon-level variation. Interventions focused on surgical technique refinement are needed to improve outcomes for patients undergoing ureteroscopy and stone intervention. PATIENT SUMMARY: Results from a diverse group of community practicing and academic center urologists show that for a large number of patients, it is not possible to be completely stone free after ureteroscopy. There is substantial variation in surgeon outcomes. Quality improvement efforts are needed to address this.

Stent Omission in Pre-stented Patients Undergoing Ureteroscopy Decreases Unplanned Health Care Utilization.

INTRODUCTION: Despite AUA guidelines providing criteria for ureteral stent omission after ureteroscopy for nephrolithiasis, stenting rates in practice remain high. Because pre-stenting may be associated with improved patient outcomes, we assessed the impact of stent omission vs placement in pre-stented and non-pre-stented patients undergoing ureteroscopy on postoperative health care utilization in Michigan. METHODS: Using the MUSIC (Michigan Urological Surgery Improvement Collaborative) registry (2016-2019), we identified pre-stented and non-pre-stented patients with low comorbidity undergoing single-stage ureteroscopy for ≤1.5 cm stones with no intraoperative complications. We assessed variation in stent omission for practices/urologists with ≥5 cases. Using multivariable logistic regression, we evaluated whether stent placement in pre-stented patients was associated with emergency department visits and hospitalizations within 30 days of ureteroscopy. RESULTS: We identified 6,266 ureteroscopies from 33 practices and 209 urologists, of which 2,244 (35.8%) were pre-stented. Pre-stented cases had higher rates of stent omission vs non-pre-stented cases (47.3% vs 26.3%). Among the 17 urology practices with ≥5 cases, stent omission rates in pre-stented patients varied widely (0%-77.8%). Among the 156 urologists with ≥5 cases, stent omission rates in pre-stented patients varied substantially (0%-100%); 34/152 (22.4%) never performed stent omission. Adjusting for risk factors, stent placement in pre-stented patients was associated with increased emergency department visits (OR 2.24, 95% CI:1.42-3.55) and hospitalizations (OR 2.19, 95% CI:1.12-4.26). CONCLUSIONS: Pre-stented patients undergoing stent omission after ureteroscopy have lower unplanned health care utilization. Stent omission is underutilized in these patients, making them an ideal group for quality improvement efforts to avoid routine stent placement after ureteroscopy.

Practice patterns and outcomes of urgent versus elective ureteroscopy in a statewide surgical collaborative.

PURPOSE: Urgent indications for nephrolithiasis treatment include obstruction with intractable pain or renal impairment without untreated infection. Patients and hospitals may benefit from urgent primary ureteroscopy. We aimed to examine variation in urgent ureteroscopy utilization and associated outcomes. METHODS: Using Reducing Operative Complications from Kidney Stones (ROCKS), we identified all ureteroscopy's between 2016 and 2019. Cases were classified by acuity (elective versus urgent). We assessed practice/urologist variation in urgent ureteroscopy performance. We characterized patients demographic, operative and outcomes data, making bivariate comparisons with elective ureteroscopy to understand implications of urgent surgery. We performed multilevel modeling to understand factors associated with unplanned healthcare encounters after urgent ureteroscopy. RESULTS: 12,859 cases were identified from 33 practices and 204 urologists, 10,854 (84.4%) elective and 2005 (15.6%) urgent. Urgent ureteroscopy was performed on younger patients (53 vs 57, p < 0.001), with higher rates of ureteral stones (72.8% vs 56.8%, p < 0.001). Urgent ureteroscopy rates varied widely by practice (2-70%) and urologist (0-98%). Urgent ureteroscopy had higher stenting rates (77.4% vs 72.5%, p < 0.001), stone free rates (66% vs 58.4%, p < 0.001), and postoperative ED visits (11% vs 7.2%, p < 0.001). There were no differences in intraoperative complications or unplanned hospitalizations. Factors predictive of ED visits in urgent ureteroscopy included concomitant ureteral/renal stone location (OR = 1.53, CI = 1.05-2.23, p = 0.035). CONCLUSIONS: In Michigan elective ureteroscopy is performed 5 times more frequently than urgent ureteroscopy with wide variation. Urgent ureteroscopy demonstrated low morbidity. Urgent ureteroscopy produced modestly higher stone free rates with a slightly increased frequency of unscheduled ED visits particularly for ureteral stones.

Development of a Surgical Decision Aid for Patients with Nephrolithiasis: Shockwave Lithotripsy vs Ureteroscopy.

Introduction and Objective: Shared decision making is recommended to guide medical/surgical treatment strategies. We aimed at developing a surgical decision aid (SDA) facilitating decision making between ureteroscopy (URS) or shockwave lithotripsy (SWL) in patients with symptomatic nephrolithiasis. Methods: The SDA scope was identified through discussions with patients and urologists in the Michigan Urological Surgery Improvement Collaborative (MUSIC). A steering committee of patient advocates, MUSIC coordinating center, content experts, biostatisticians, and urologists was formed. Content domains were assessed through best available evidence and content experts. For content validation we anonymously surveyed 35 MUSIC urologists. Content validity ratios (CVR), numeric value indicating degree of expert validity, were calculated. Face validation interviews were conducted with patient advocates. Results: The SDA prototype using descriptive plain language and pictorial information was designed for nephrolithiasis patients, candidates for SWL or URS. It first provides patients procedural education whereas the second section informs urologists of patient goals. Six content domains were chosen: anesthesia type, effectiveness, number of procedures, risk, pain, and recovery. Overall, 91.4% and 85.7% of MUSIC urologists indicated that each section accomplished their goals, respectively. Anesthesia received an unacceptable CVR. High levels of face validation overall were reported with unacceptable scoring for anesthesia and recovery. Conclusions: We developed an SDA facilitating treatment choice between SWL and URS with promising content and face validity. Agreement and contradiction between anesthesia type and recovery validation results indicate the importance of shared decision making and the need for a validated SDA. Future work should focus on the SDAs value and opportunities for refinement in practice.

Variation and Correlation in Postoperative Imaging After Shockwave Lithotripsy and Ureteroscopy by Treatment Modality: Results of a Statewide Clinical Registry.

OBJECTIVE: To understand how patient, practice/urologist-level factors impact imaging after ureteroscopy (URS) and shockwave lithotripsy (SWL). METHODS: Using the Reducing Operative Complications from Kidney Stones (ROCKS) clinical registry from the Michigan Urological Surgery Improvement Collaborative (MUSIC), we identified patients undergoing URS and SWL between 2016-2019. Frequency and modality of 60-day postoperative imaging was assessed. We made bivariate comparisons across demographic/clinical data and assessed provider/practice-level imaging rate variation. We assessed correlation between imaging use within practices by treatment modality. Multivariable logistic regression controlling for practice/urologist variation was used to adjust for group differences. RESULTS: 14,894 cases were identified (9621 URS, 5273 SWL) from 33 practices and 205 urologists. Overall postoperative imaging rate was 49.1% and was significantly different following URS and SWL (36.3% vs 72.4%, P<0.01). Substantial practice variation was seen in rates following URS (range 0-93.1%) and SWL (range 36-95.2%). Odds of postoperative imaging by practice varied significantly (range 0.02-1.96). Moderate postoperative imaging correlation for URS and SWL (0.7, P<0.001) was seen. No practice had significantly higher odds of post-URS imaging. There was increased odds of postoperative imaging for SWL modality, larger stones and renal stones. CONCLUSION: Imaging rates after URS are almost half the rate for SWL with wide variation, underscoring uncertainty with how postoperative imaging is approached. However, practices who have higher post-URS imaging rates also image highly after SWL. Increased patient complexity and renal stone location drive imaging following URS.

Oxygen Venous Embolism After Hydrogen Peroxide Use During Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy.

Background: Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is a common antiseptic that is available without a prescription in the United States, and it is indicated for minor dermal abrasion; mouth, gum, or dental irritations; and removal of oral secretion. Several other medical uses have also been described, including clot dissolution during endoscopic gastrointestinal evaluation, cleansing of orthopedic surgical sites, and bladder irrigation. However, these uses of H2O2, as well as high-dose ingestion, have been associated with a wide variety of medical complications, including but not limited to air pulmonary embolism and stroke. Case Presentation: Our patient is a 51-year-old female with a medical history of hypertension, familial, hypercholesterolemia, gallstones, depression, coronary artery disease (identified on calcium study because of familial hypercholesterolemia), nephrolithiasis, and recurrent cystitis. She required percutaneous nephrolithotomy and had H2O2 administered for clot dissolution. The clinical and temporal evidence would suggest a transient pulmonary air embolus after the intrarenal administration of or irrigation with H2O2, large amounts under high pressure. Conclusion: This represents the first reported incidence of air embolus as a result of intrarenal administration of H2O2.

Are Emergently Placed Nephrostomy Tubes Suitable for Subsequent Percutaneous Endoscopic Renal Surgery?

OBJECTIVE: To determine the percentage of emergently placed nephrostomy tubes (NT) that were subsequently deemed usable for definitive percutaneous nephrolithotomy or percutaneous antegrade ureteroscopy in patients presenting with nephrolithiasis. METHODS: A multi-institutional retrospective database review was completed to identify patients who underwent emergent NT placement and then subsequent percutaneous nephrolithotomy or percutaneous antegrade ureteroscopy. Demographic, operative, and postoperative data were collected. Complications were classified using the Clavien-Dindo system. RESULTS: A total of 36 patients with 41 NTs met inclusion criteria. Indications for emergent NT placement were: obstruction with evidence of urinary tract infection/pyelonephritis (61%) and obstruction with acute kidney injury (39%). After recovery from the acute event and NT placement and during subsequent percutaneous surgical procedures, 9 NTs (22%) were sufficient without need for additional percutaneous access, 2 NTs (5%) were partially sufficient and were used in conjunction with an additional percutaneous access tract, and 30 NTs (73%) were unusable. CONCLUSION: In this multi-institutional review, only 22% of NTs placed for emergent indications were sufficient for subsequent percutaneous surgery without the creation of additional percutaneous tracts. Urologists should be prepared to obtain additional access during definitive percutaneous renal surgery in patients who have had a tube placed under emergent conditions.

The Treatment of Genitoperineal Hidradenitis Suppurativa: A Review of the Literature.

Hidradenitis suppurativa is a chronic inflammatory condition affecting the axilla, genitals, perineum, and perianal regions. The pathophysiology of hidradenitis suppurativa is complex and requires a multidisciplinary approach to treatment involving medical and surgical management when indicated. We describe our multidisciplinary protocol for treatment, which includes rheumatology-monitored immunotherapy, medical management, wide surgical resection, wound care, and reconstruction. The multidisciplinary care team includes rheumatology, wound care, and reconstructive urologic surgery. Surgical management includes wide local surgical resection, negative pressure dressing, delayed reconstruction, and perioperative immunotherapy. Multimodal treatment with surgical, medical, wound, and immunotherapy care is vital to successful treatment.

Contract Costs Associated with Maintaining Flexible Ureteroscopes: A Single Center Experience.

INTRODUCTION: We compared the cost of flexible ureteroscope processing and maintenance contracts offered by a scope manufacturer and a third-party company. METHODS: Use and repairs of the Storz 11278AU1 Flex X2 Flexible Ureteroscope are prospectively recorded at our large, 371-bed, acute care hospital. A retrospective analysis of the processing of ureteroscopic instruments during a 3-year period (2011 to 2013) was completed. We compared the handling of ureteroscopes between 1 year under a third-party contractor (Integrated Medical Systems International, Inc. [IMS]) and 2 prior years under the manufacturer (KARL STORZ) contract. RESULTS: From January 1, 2011 through October 1, 2012 our institution used the manufacturer for the processing of ureteroscopic instruments. From January 1, 2013 through December 9, 2013 our institution used the third-party contractor IMS for repairs. The number of procedures performed per repair/exchange during the manufacturer contract was 19.9 and the number of procedures performed per repair/exchange during the third-party contract was 11. The third-party contract resulted in a reduction of procedures performed per repair/exchange by 52%. Adjusted for inflation, the yearly cost of ureteroscope repairs was $125,715 during the manufacturer contract and $158,040 during the third-party contract. By analyzing the costs incurred in 2013, if our institution had maintained the manufacturer contract for all 3 years, the estimated repair cost would have resulted in a savings of $32,325. CONCLUSIONS: Using the manufacturer repair contract is more cost-effective than using that of third-party companies.

The Undescended Testicles of West Virginia: A Single Center Experience.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the age of pediatric patients who underwent surgical intervention for undescended testicles (UDT) at our institution. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed all pediatric patients who underwent orchiopexy and/or diagnostic laparoscopy for undescended or non-palpable testicles with our pediatric urologist from January 2013-March 2014. Patients were separated into those undergoing surgical intervention at 6-12 months, 13-24 months, 25-48 months, and >48 months of age. RESULTS: 70 patients underwent surgical intervention. Only 15 patients (21.4%) underwent surgical intervention within the recommended time period of 6-12 months. Orchiopexy was performed on 21 patients (30.0%) from 13-24 months, 12 patients (17.1%) from 25-48 months, and 22 patients (31.5%) after 48 months of age. CONCLUSIONS: Current American Urologic Association (AUA) recommendations advocate orchiopexy between 6-12 months of age. Improved parent and primary care education and access to pediatric urological evaluation of UDT will hopefully improve the timeliness of intervention within our state.

Ultrasound Guided, Freehand Transperineal Prostate Biopsy: An Alternative to the Transrectal Approach.

INTRODUCTION: There is growing interest in the use of transperineal prostate biopsy due to the advantages of decreased infection risk and improved cancer detection rates. However, brachytherapy stepper units and templates may increase costs and operative time for the practicing urologist. We present the safety, feasibility and early outcomes of a single urologist's experience with ultrasound guided freehand transperineal prostate biopsy as an alternative to transrectal ultrasound guided biopsy. METHODS: A retrospective review of all prospectively performed ultrasound guided freehand transperineal prostate biopsies between January 1, 2012 and April 30, 2014 was performed. Primary outcome measurements were safety and feasibility. RESULTS: A total of 274 ultrasound guided freehand transperineal prostate biopsies were performed in 244 patients. Operative and total operating room use times were 7.9 and 17.5 minutes, respectively, with an average of 14.4 cores obtained during each procedure. The overall cancer detection rates for all procedures, those in biopsy naïve patients and those performed for active surveillance were 62.8%, 56.4% and 89%, respectively. New diagnoses of prostate cancer occurred in 41.2% of patients with 10% positive after a previous negative transrectal ultrasound guided biopsy. Complications (Clavien grade I or greater) including systemic infection, urinary retention and hematuria or pain requiring physician or hospital intervention did not occur. CONCLUSIONS: The use of ultrasound guided freehand transperineal prostate biopsy for the suspicion or surveillance of prostate cancer is feasible and safe. The results were encouraging with respect to the primary outcome measurements. Ultrasound guided freehand transperineal prostate biopsy with the patient under local anesthesia is currently under investigation. Large, prospective, randomized, multiple operator studies to evaluate the comparative effectiveness of freehand transperineal prostate biopsy and transrectal ultrasound guided biopsy techniques are recommended.

Metabolic Syndrome and Nephrolithiasis Risk: Should the Medical Management of Nephrolithiasis Include the Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome?

This article reviews the relationship between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and nephrolithiasis, as well as the clinical implications for patients with this dual diagnosis. MetS, estimated to affect 25% of adults in the United States, is associated with a fivefold increase in the risk of developing diabetes, a doubling of the risk of acquiring cardiovascular disease, and an increase in overall mortality. Defined as a syndrome, MetS is recognized clinically by numerous constitutive traits, including abdominal obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia (elevated triglycerides, low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol), and hyperglycemia. Urologic complications of MetS include a 30% higher risk of nephrolithiasis, with an increased percentage of uric acid nephrolithiasis in the setting of hyperuricemia, hyperuricosuria, low urine pH, and low urinary volume. Current American Urological Association and European Association of Urology guidelines suggest investigating the etiology of nephrolithiasis in affected individuals; however, there is no specific goal of treating MetS as part of the medical management. Weight loss and exercise, the main lifestyle treatments of MetS, counter abdominal obesity and insulin resistance and reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events and the development of diabetes. These recommendations may offer a beneficial adjunctive treatment option for nephrolithiasis complicated by MetS. Although definitive therapeutic recommendations must await further studies, it seems both reasonable and justifiable for the urologist, as part of a multidisciplinary team, to recommend these important lifestyle changes to patients with both conditions. These recommendations should accompany the currently accepted management of nephrolithiasis.