Photo Credit: Sasirin pamai
The following is a summary of “Is Urethral Catheterization Necessary in Retzius-sparing Robot-assisted Radical Prostatectomy?,” published in the December 2023 issue of Urology by Taylor, et al.
For a study, researchers sought to assess whether performing urethral catheter (UC)-free anastomosis during Retzius-sparing radical prostatectomy (RP) leads to worsening immediate perioperative and postoperative complications.
They conducted a retrospective review of patient records of those who underwent robotic-assisted RP with or without indwelling UC placement by a single surgeon between January 2020 and March 2022. They evaluated clinical and pathological characteristics and compared them between the two groups. Continuous variables were compared using an independent t-test, while categorical variables were analyzed using Pearson’s chi-square test or Fisher exact test.
A total of 115 patients underwent robotic prostatectomy during the specified period. Among them, 62 patients had a UC for 12 hours postoperatively and a suprapubic catheter for 6 days, while 53 patients had the UC omitted. No significant differences were observed between the groups in terms of age, body mass index, American Society of Anesthesiology score, prostate-specific antigen, stage, node status, or positive margins. Rates of anastomotic leak, ileus, or urethral stricture did not significantly differ between the two groups. However, patients in the suprapubic catheter-only group exhibited a significantly higher pad-free rate at 3 months (P = .04). No differences were noted in the average number of pads used or the number of patients using more than 1 pad/day.
The omission of urethral catheterization during Retzius-sparing RP was deemed safe and did not increase the risk of perioperative or postoperative complications. Instead, it is associated with a significantly improved 3-month pad-free rate.
Reference: goldjournal.net/article/S0090-4295(23)00808-7/abstract
