A prospective trial on ureteral stenting combined with secondary ureteroscopy after an initial failed procedure.

The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of the intentional ureteral stenting on the success rate of calculus extraction by second ureteroscopy, when the initial ureteroscopy failed. We prospectively enrolled 512 patients with ureteral calculi who underwent ureteroscopies from April 2005 to May 2011. The patients with failed initial ureteroscopies were classified into two groups depending on the stent type: the Double-J stent and the ureteral catheter group. The secondary ureteroscopies were performed in a short period (3-22 days). Data were abstracted on stone size, location, patient demographics, outcome and complications. A total of 453 patients had success after the initial ureteroscopy and the success rate was 88.5%. Of the 59 failed patients, 40 were managed by reureteroscopy with Double-J stent placement and 19 with ureteral catheters. There were no statistically significant differences between patients in Double-J stent and ureteral catheter group in the aspects of age, primary stone size, gender, stone location and stone-free rate [39/40 (97.5%) versus 19/19 (100%), p > 0.05]. Moreover, the mean stents retaining period before the second ureteroscopy was significantly shorter in the ureteral catheter group, when compared with the Double-J stent group (3.9 versus 16.9 days, p < 0.01). The complications were moderate and not significantly different between the two groups (p > 0.05). Indwelling a ureteral stent leads to a high subsequent success rate for second ureteroscopy following an initial failed procedure. In addition to Double-J stent, the ureteral catheter stent was an effective alternative with shorter retaining period, especially for impacted stones.