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The following is a summary of “A retrospective comparison of Sun’s tip-flexible semirigid ureterorenoscopy, super-mini percutaneous nephrolithotomy and flexible ureteroscopy applied to treat upper urinary tract calculi,” published in the February 2024 issue of Urology by Huang et al.
This retrospective study aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of three surgical techniques—Sun’s tip-flexible semirigid ureterorenoscopy (tf-URS), super-mini percutaneous nephrolithotomy (SMP), and flexible ureteroscopy (FURS)—for the treatment of upper urinary tract calculi, including upper ureteral or renal calculi. Patients with calculi ranging from 1.0 to 2.0 cm in size who underwent tf-URS, SMP, or FURS were included. Various indicators reflecting safety and efficacy were compared among the three techniques. SMP demonstrated a higher single stone crushing success rate but was associated with longer operation times, extended postoperative hospital stays, increased blood loss, and higher postoperative pain scores than FURS and tf-URS (P < 0.05). However, the hospitalization cost was lower for the tf-URS group compared to the SMP and FURS groups (P < 0.05). The tf-URS group exhibited a significantly higher incidence of postoperative fever than the SMP group (P < 0.05). No significant differences were observed in mucosal injury, perirenal hematoma, and stone-free rate at 3 months post-surgery (P > 0.05).
In conclusion, tf-URS and FURS offer advantages in terms of minimal invasion, hospitalization cost, patient comfort, and length of hospital stay, while SMP shows a higher stone-free rate. These surgical techniques are deemed safe, reliable, and complementary, and the selection among them should be based on individual clinical circumstances.
Source: bmcurol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12894-024-01412-z