Type of Surgery
Information
Last updated: 02/17/2009
Patients selected for bladder augmentation are chosen after they undergo a thorough physical exam, x-ray tests, and bladder physiology tests, as well as a renal and bladder ultrasound for any dilation of the kidneys or ureters or kidney obstruction....
A VCUG (holding and voiding urine) test is performed to assess the contour of the bladder and to assess for ureteral reflux (back up of urine to the kidneys). Finally, a CMG (cystometrogram) is performed in the physician's office to judge the pressure and volume levels at which the urine leakage occurs. Once the tests, as well as the history and physical exam are completed, treatment plans commence.
The patient should plan for up to two weeks in the hospital. The patient will have been on a low-residue diet for a few days before admission. Surgery will take place two to three days after hospital admittance. In the hospital, a general examination will be performed and blood taken. The bowel will need to be cleaned in preparation. Clear fluids will be given, as well as a strong laxative prior to surgery.
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Other Information
Bladder augmentation is a surgical alteration of the urinary bladder. It involves removing strips of tissue from the intestinal tract and adding this to the tissue of the bladder. This has two intended results: increased bladder volume; and a reduced percentage of the bladder involved in contraction, that in turn results in lower internal pressures in the bladder during urination.
Risks of bladder augmentation include incomplete voiding of the bladder post-surgery (resulting in the patient having to undergo intermittent catheterisation or an indwelling catheter), acute intestinal obstruction due to adhesions some years after surgery, and, in extremely rare cases, cancers of the intestinal tissue within the bladder. It must be stressed that this risk is very small, and some specialists[weasel words] still regard the link to cancer as a theoretical one.
Other Information
In 2000, the estimated number of doctor visits and outpatient hospital visits by adults aged 20 or older with “calculus of kidney and ureters” as a listed diagnosis was of 2 million visits with urolithiasis as the primary diagnosis.
From: NKUDIC
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