Objectives: To assess the effect of the length of the ureter resected and other clinical variables on ureterointestinal anastomotic (UIA) stricture rate following radical cystectomy and ileal segment urinary diversion.
Methods and materials: We identified 519 consecutive patients who underwent cystectomy and ileal conduit or ileal orthotopic neobladder diversion from January 2007 to August 2012. The length of the ureter resected was defined as the length of the ureter in the cystectomy specimen plus the length of the distal ureter submitted for pathologic analysis. The primary end point was the risk of UIA stricture formation, assessed by Cox proportional hazards analysis.
Results: A total of 463 patients met the inclusion criteria with complete data. Median follow-up was 459 days (interquartile range [IQR]: 211-927). Median time to stricture formation was 235 (IQR: 134-352) and 232 days (IQR: 132-351) on the right and the left ureter, respectively. Overall stricture rate per ureter was 5.9% on the right vs. 10.0% on the left (P = 0.03). There was no difference in demographic, operative, or perioperative variables between patients with and without UIA strictures. On multivariate analysis adjusted for age, sex, anastomosis technique (running vs. interrupted), and length of ureter resected, only a Clavien complication≥III (hazard ratio = 2.11, 1.01-4.40) and urine leak (hazard ratio = 3.37, 1.08-10.46) significantly predicted for left- and right-sided stricture formation, respectively. The length of the ureter resected did not predict UIA stricture formation on either side.
Conclusions: The etiology of benign UIA strictures following ileal urinary diversion is likely multifactorial. Our data suggest that a complicated postoperative course and urine leak are risk factors for UIA stricture formation. The length of the distal ureter resected did not significantly affect stricture rate.
Keywords: Cystectomy; Postoperative complications; Reimplantation; Ureteral stricture; Ureterointestinal anastomosis; Urinary bladder neoplasms.
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