A novel approach for removing an intra-renal migrated Memokath™ stent.

INTRODUCTION

The use of metallic stents in managing benign and malignant ureteric strictures is gaining increasing popularity in urology and has been shown to be a safe and effective alternative to the commonly used double J stents.

PRESENTATION OF CASE

We present here the case of a 54 year old female with a symptomatic benign ureteric narrowing at the pelvi-ureteric junction of her left kidney who was successfully managed with a metallic Memokath™ stent inserted at the site of the stricture. She went on to develop a rare complication of proximal migration of the stent into the kidney necessitating removal.

DISCUSSION

Our study systematically reviews the published evidence for the clinical effectiveness of metallic ureteric stents in stricture management and details a novel and safe approach that was successfully used to remove the intra-renal migrated stent in an antegrade percutaneous fashion.

CONCLUSION

Our report highlights a rare complication of metallic ureteric stents and a novel approach to their removal. This has significant importance for the urologist managing an awkwardly positioned stent lying within the kidney and hence difficult to manipulate via the previously published retrograde approaches.