Bladder neck closure in children: a decade of followup.
OBJECTIVE
Bladder neck closure necessitates lifelong clean intermittent catheterization. Concerns have been raised regarding well-being and compliance in patients on long-term clean intermittent catheterization. Noncompliance may result in subsequent hydronephrosis, incontinence, infection, cystolithiasis and perforation. We analyzed our long-term results with bladder neck closure followed at least 10 years for patient compliance with clean intermittent catheterization, upper tract preservation, continence, complications and subsequent procedures.


METHODS
All patients followed at least 10 years after bladder neck closure were included in this study.


RESULTS
Seven boys and 5 girls with a mean age of 7.0 years and urinary incontinence underwent bladder neck closure and continent urinary diversion between 1993 and 1998. The primary diagnosis was exstrophy in 5 patients, spinal dysraphism in 3, trauma in 2, sacral agenesis in 1 and a duplicated hindgut in 1. Mean followup was 12.4 years (range 10 to 14). All patients performed clean intermittent catheterization 4 to 6 times daily. Hydronephrosis improved or remained stable in the 11 patients who underwent bladder augmentation. Mild new hydronephrosis developed in 1 patient and resolved after increasing clean intermittent catheterization frequency. Bladder neck closure successfully cured incontinence in all of the last 6 patients who underwent modified bladder neck closure with a posterior bladder neck flap, while 2 of the earlier 6 bladder neck closures required revision for a subsequent 100% success rate. Additional operations were required in 6 patients. To our knowledge this is the longest followup after bladder neck closure reported in the literature.


CONCLUSIONS
Patient compliance with long-term clean intermittent catheterization is good after bladder neck closure. Bladder neck closure provides excellent long-term safety for the upper urinary tract and continence. It is associated with relatively low morbidity, which is correctible.
Landau
Ezekiel H
EH
Pediatric Urology Unit, Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel. hezil@ekmd.huji.ac.il
Gofrit
Ofer N
ON
Pode
Dov
D
Jurim
Oded
O
Shenfeld
Ofer Z
OZ
Duvdevani
Mordechai
M
Gross
Eitan M
EM
Merguerian
Paul A
PA
Katz
Ran
R
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010349:Patient Compliance; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors; D001743:Urinary Bladder / Q000601:surgery*; D014546:Urinary Catheterization; D014547:Urinary Diversion; D014549:Urinary Incontinence / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D016476:Urinary Reservoirs, Continent; D013520:Urologic Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods