[Flexible ureterorenoscopy vs percutaneous nephrolithotomy for renal stone management: Retrospective study]

Renal Pseudoaneurysms after Flexible Ureteroscopy and Holmium Laser Lithotripsy: A Case Report

Background

Flexible ureteroscopy (FURS) and holmium laser lithotripsy is considered one of the most minimally invasive and safe surgical methods for the treatment of renal calculi. Renal pseudoaneurysm is a rare complication after FURS holmium laser lithotripsy. We report a case of renal pseudoaneurysm after FURS and holmium laser lithotripsy and review the relevant literature to analyze the possible etiology and summarize the treatment.

Case presentation

A 29-year-old male with a 2-year history of diabetes was admitted to the hospital because of right back pain for 5 days. A doppler ultrasound demonstrated bilateral renal calculi with bilateral mild hydronephrosis. The patient underwent one-stage right FURS and holmium laser lithotripsy and bilateral ureteral stent implantation. The urine was clear on the second day after the operation, and he was discharged from the hospital. Due to severe gross hematuria, he had to be hospitalized 28 days after the operation. A CT scan showed multiple blood clots in the right renal pelvis and bladder. An emergency blood transfusion and removal of the bladder blood clots and bilateral double J tubes were performed. His urine was clear for one week, and he was discharged from the hospital. He was hospitalized again 47 days after the operation because of fever and hematuria. A CT scan demonstrated blood clots in the bladder and right renal pelvis. Angiography showed a pseudoaneurysm in a small branch of the right renal artery, and hematuria stopped after selective renal artery embolization with microcoils.

Conclusion

FURS and holmium laser lithotripsy is safe, but we should be aware of the possibility of renal artery pseudoaneurysms (RAP). Through careful operation during the surgery, avoiding kidney injury, reducing intrarenal pressure and controlling the time of operation may prevent the occurrence of this complication. Vascular embolization is the first choice for the treatment of pseudoaneurysms.

Evaluation and comparison of scoring systems for predicting stone-free status after flexible ureteroscopy for renal and ureteral stones

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate four predictive scores for stone-free rate (SFR) after flexible ureterorenoscopy (f-URS) with holmium-YAG laser fragmentation of renal and ureteral lithiasis.

METHODS

We carried out a retrospective analysis of 800 f-URS procedures performed in our institution between January 2009 and December 2016. For each procedure, a single surgeon calculated the following scores: S.T.O.N.E score; Resorlu Unsal Stone Score (RUSS); modified Seoul National University Renal Complexity (S-ReSC) score; and Ito's score.

RESULTS

Overall SFR was 74.1%. Univariate analysis demonstrated that stone size (p<0.0001), stone volume (p<0.0001), stone number (p = 0.004), narrow lower pole infundibulopelvic angle (IPA) (p = 0.003) and lower pole location + IPA <45° (p = 0.011) were significantly associated with SFR. All scores differed between the stone-free and non-stone-free groups. Area under the curve of the receiving operator characteristics curve was calculated for each score: 0.617 [95%CI: 0.575-0.660] for the S.T.O.N.E score; 0.644 [95%CI: 0.609-0.680] for the RUSS; 0.651 [95%CI: 0.606-0.697] for the S-ReSC score; and 0.735 [95%CI: 0.692-0.777] for Ito's nomogram.

CONCLUSION

All four scores were predictive of SFR after f-URS. Ito's score was the most sensitive. However, the performance of all scores in this analysis was lower than in developmental studies.