Laparoscopic ureterovesical repair for megaureter treatment

Abstract Background An alternative treatment for obstructive and refluxing obstructive megaureter with ureterovesical junction maintenance through laparoscopy is proposed. Material and methods The series consists of 8 cases, all of them studied because of prenatal hydronephrosis or febrile urinary tract infection. Seven were diagnosed with obstructive megaureter and one with obstructive refluxing megaureter. The procedure consisted in incising the stenotic portion of the ureter longitudinally and maintaining its posterior wall attached to the bladder, the anterior wall of the ureter was anastomosed transversally to the bladder mucosa in order to liberate the obstruction. Results Two of the 8 cases were women and 6 were male. They were aged between 5 months and 11 years (average age of 2.9 years). The surgical time varied between 90 and 120 min, with a 48 h hospital stay. The permanence of the vesical catheter and the double J stent was of 48 h and 6 weeks, respectively. A female patient developed febrile urinary tract infection one week after the surgical procedure. The rest of the patients remained asymptomatic, with normal urinalysis and quarterly urine culture results. Six months after the procedure, the ultrasound showed improvement of the ureteral diameter and of the pyelocaliceal ectasia. The average follow-up was of 2 years. Discussion The handling of stenosis with longitudinal incision of the ureter and transverse anastomosis to the bladder mucosa, seems promising. The laparoscopic approach allows to identify clearly the longitude of the stenotic segment and join with relative precision such opening with the one of the vesical mucosa.