title: Safety and Efficacy of Ureteral Stent Placement at the Bedside Using Local Anesthesia.
abstract: Ureteral stent placement for decompressing renal units obstructed by calculi is safe and can be potentially lifesaving in the prompt resolution of the sequelae of renal obstruction, infection and an obstructing stone. At many institutions there can be prolonged delay in getting patients to the operating room for stent placement. We hypothesized that it is safe and efficacious to attempt ureteral stent placement using local anesthesia at the bedside without live fluoroscopic guidance.
  
  
  
  Patients presenting with symptomatic, obstructing ureteral calculi were given the option of bedside ureteral stent placement. Viscous lidocaine was placed into the urethra before flexible cystoscopic examination. A 260 cm Glidewire® was used as initial access with only 1 attempt at passage. All stent placements were confirmed with immediate post-procedure radiograph. Prospectively collected data were retrospectively analyzed for all patients who underwent attempted bedside ureteral stent placement.
  
  
  
  A total of 42 patients underwent attempted bedside stent placement under local anesthesia without fluoroscopic guidance. Mean stone size was 8.3 mm and 71% of stones were in the proximal ureter. Ureteral stent placement was pursued in 14% of patients for infection and in 59% for intractable pain. Ureteral stent placement was successful in 30 patients (71%). Statistical analysis did not reveal any significant predictors of successful stent placement in this cohort of patients.
  
  
  
  In our cohort bedside ureteral stent placement was well tolerated, safe and efficacious, thus expediting upper tract decompression in the setting of obstructed renal units in more than 70% of patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Paymon
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nourparvar
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Adam B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Shrewsberry
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Aaron D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Dattatraya
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Patil
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Hany
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Atallah
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Kenneth
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ogan
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: K Jeff
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Carney
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. Electronic address: vmaster@emory.edu.
authors.forename: Viraj A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Master
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000772:Anesthesia, Local; D003558:Cystoscopy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019095:Point-of-Care Systems; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015607:Stents; D014514:Ureteral Calculi / Q000628:therapy*; D014517:Ureteral Obstruction / Q000628:therapy*
keywords: stents; ureteral obstruction; urolithiasis