Pyelo-hepatic abscess caused by staghorn stone infection: a case report

BACKGROUND

The most common source of pyogenic liver abscess is biliary tract infection. Other less common routes include the spread of bacteria from distant foci. However, direct extension of a perinephric infection focus to the liver is extremely rare.

CASE REPORT

The patient was a non-diabetic, immunocompetent, 29-year-old woman of mixed race ancestry with a history of recurrent urinary tract infections who was referred to our hospital because of an ultrasound-detected liver abscess. She was initially treated with metronidazole for 20 days at the referring institution for suspected amebic abscess without improvement. On admission to our center, she was febrile and complained of a dull right upper quadrant pain. A POCUS ultrasound suggested a pyogenic abscess, probably from a staghorn calculus infection. She received meroperem and amikacin for 22 and 10 days, respectively. Repeat hemocultures showed no growth, but urine cultures were positive for Proteus sp. Complete remission of clinical and imaging findings was observed under antibiotics. The patient was referred to the urology outpatient clinic to discuss the option of radical nephrectomy. CONCLUSION : This case underlines the high morbidity of staghorn calculi.

[Results of percutaneous nephrolithotomy using two accesses in the treatment of patients with staghorn stones]

INTRODUCTION

In order to improve clinical efficiency and reduce the risk of postoperative complications in patients with staghorn stones, we compared the results of original technique of biportal percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) with the standard PCNL.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The total of 221 patients with staghorn stones of K3-K4 was included in the study. The biportal PCNL was used in 109 patients, while the control group consisted of 112 patients. Inclusion criteria were stone size more or equal 2 cm, age over 18 years, absence of coagulopathy and width of the renal parenchyma more or equal 1 cm. On 1st postoperative day, ultrasound or plain urography was performed, while in patient with radiolucent stones, multi-slice computed tomography was used. In addition, complete blood count and biochemical profile were done. The main difference from the standard PCNL with sequential renal tracts is the simultaneous creation of the main and additional accesses when performing biportal PCNL. This method allowed two surgeons to simultaneously and synergistically perform lithotripsy and stone extraction from two accesses using a standard nephroscope in the main tract of 24 Ch and a miniaturized nephroscope in the additional tract of 16.5 Ch.

RESULTS

The stone-free rate in the group of biportal PCNL was 80.7% (n=88), compared to 72.3% in the control group (n=81). Secondary interventions and additional procedures were required in 29 (26.6%) and 40 (39.2%) cases, respectively. The total number of infectious and hemorrhagic complications was higher in the control group.

DISCUSSION

According to our data, significant advantages are observed in the group of biportal PCNL compared to the standard technique.

CONCLUSION

Biportal PCNL can be recommended as a promising advancement of the technique traditionally used in the clinical practice.

[Unilateral combination of staghorn stone with kidney tumor]

This manuscript provides an overview of the available literature about unilateral combination of nephrolithiasis and renal tumor. Analysis of publications has shown that ipsilateral staghorn calculus and kidney tumors are an extremely rare combination. The majority of these infrequent papers describe case reports where the method of treating such patients is limited by the capabilities and competence of the surgeon or clinic. Despite some messages of favorable outcomes of combined interventions, the effectiveness of simultaneous laparoscopic partial nephrectomy and pyelolithotomy has not been studied, and the technique of this procedure, tactics and criteria for choosing this method are not defined.

How I Do It: Modification of technique to safely position patients with super obesity in dorsal lithotomy for ureteroscopic management of kidney stones

Obesity is a known risk factor for recurrent nephrolithiasis and it can be challenging to provide safe surgical intervention in the super obese population. Despite high weight limits on surgical beds, these often do not take into account positioning the patient on the end of the bed for dorsal lithotomy, which can risk an unsteady bed. In addition, depending on patient habitus the leg stirrups may not accommodate. There is limited literature that discusses the technical approach for positioning super obese patients in dorsal lithotomy when the weight limit approaches or exceeds the capacity of equipment available. In this article, we present a modified positioning technique to improve bed stability, which also provides an alternative if the patient's legs are not supported by available leg stirrups. From our experience, this modified dorsal lithotomy positioning for ureteroscopy is feasible and safe in patients with super obesity. Surgical intervention on this population requires appropriate planning and teamwork to ensure safe positioning.

Squamous cell carcinoma of the renal pelvis presenting as an integumentary neoplasm of the flank: A case report

RATIONALE

Although chronic pyelonephritis and urolithiasis are established risk factors for squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), only a minority of patients with chronic urolithiasis eventually develop SCC. It is believed that the chronic irritation leads to squamous cell metaplasia that may subsequently develop into SCC. Although studies show that SSC generally spreads locally with associated symptoms of lymphadenopathy, metastasis to the lungs and liver have also been reported. However, cases spreading to the flank have yet to be reported. Therefore, the use of reconstructive techniques for the repair of extensive soft tissue defects in the flank region after extended retroperitoneal resection, is unknown.

PATIENT CONCERNS

We report a 54-year-old man who presented with a 1-month history of an enlarged skin mass on the right flank.

DIAGNOSES

The patient was subsequently diagnosed with metastatic SCC involving the patient's integumentary system near the flank region proximal to the right kidney following percutaneous nephrostomy.

INTERVENTIONS

The skin mass and the surrounding muscle tissue of the right flank were excised with a wide resection margin including radial nephrectomy. The soft tissue defect after resection was reconstructed using a unilateral gluteus maximus myocutaneous V-Y advancement flap.

OUTCOMES

No recurrence of the SSC was found on follow-up CT performed 12 months postoperatively.

LESSONS

In patients with long-standing nephrolithiasis complicated by staghorn stone-related infections, biopsies from suspicious lesions detected during percutaneous nephrolithotomy may facilitate early diagnosis. The modified gluteus maximus V-Y advancement flap may be a useful technique for the reconstruction of extensive soft-tissue defects involving the flank region.

[Initial experience with laparoscopic anatrophic nephrolithotomy]

Percutaneous nephrolithotomy is a recognized standard for minimally invasive treatment of large kidney stones. Percutaneous interventions for complete staghorn stones are associated with a higher risk of complications that precludes abandoning the traditional open operations, one of which is an anatrophic nephrolithotomy. This paper presents the first personal experience in laparoscopic transmesenteric anatrophic nephrolithotomy. The intervention was conducted in 3 patients (2 males and 1 female) aged 43 to 58 years, having a primary symptomatic complete left kidney staghorn stones sized from 7.2 to 9.1 cm along the longitudinal axis. Operation time ranged from 130 to 170 minutes, kidney warm ischemia time - from 21 to 24 minutes, blood loss - from 180 to 250 ml. The staghorn stone was completely extracted in 2 patients. In one patient, a 0.8 cm residual stone was left in the completely excluded calix, since it caused none clinical symptoms and did not impair urinary flow. At this stage, the number of laparoscopic procedures for complete staghorn nephrolithiasis is too small to carry out an adequate statistical analysis and draw any definite conclusions. Nevertheless, the first experience demonstrated not only plausibility but also the effectiveness of such operations.

Giant staghorn common bile duct calculus

Background - Stones in common bile duct are defined as 'large' if they are more than 15 mm in size. There are very few reports which describe a giant stone measuring 5 cm or more and exceptionally a staghorn calculus in the common bile duct. Purpose - The purpose is to report a new rare case of giant staghorn gallstone and discuss the diagnostic approach and therapeutic possibilities. Case report - We report a case of a giant staghorn common bile duct calculus in a 65-year-old patient. Its removal required 2 operations and an endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography with endoscopic sphincterotomy. Conclusion - Lithiasis of the common bile duct is considered to be a benign, but may sometimes be complicated and time-consuming. Staghorn calculi are very rare in the biliary tract. We found only two published reports of staghorn common bile duct calculi.