Efficacy and Complication of Flexible Ureteroscopic Holmium Laser Incision for Simple Renal Cysts: A Retrospective Study.

The aim of this research was to verify the efficacy and complication of flexible ureteroscopic holmium laser incision for simple renal cysts (SRCs). We retrospectively reviewed 116 patients who not only had done flexible ureteroscopic holmium laser incision or laparoscopic decortication for SRC in our institution but also had sufficient data: preoperative information and >1-year follow-up records. The following variables were recorded: age, gender, side, cyst size, location (upper pole, lower pole, and interpolar), blood loss, operative duration, complications during and after surgery, pathology report, and presence or absence of flank pain. The primary endpoint was the efficacy of the treatment; secondary endpoints were safety, pain, and the resolution of other complications. All patients underwent radiologic imaging of the kidneys with a repeated CT, before the operation, 3 and 12 months after surgery. If there were no cysts on the most recent imaging, we defined it as a radiologic success. No statistically significant difference in the background variable in patients of group A (64 patients, flexible ureteroscopic holmium laser incision) and group B (52 patients, laparoscopic decortication) was found, including age, gender, cyst's side, cyst's location, and cyst size before the operation. There were less blood loss by surgeons' evaluation and shorter operative duration ( < 0.001) in group A. In group A, there were three patients who had failed in the first time of operation (two patients failed to place flexible ureteroscope through ureter because of ureteral stricture, and one patient was unable to find the renal cyst in the view of flexible ureteroscope), and no severe postoperative complication was observed. The number of postoperative radiologic failure was five at 3 months and three at 12 months in group A, whereas all the procedures were completed laparoscopically, and no conversion was necessary for group B. But there was one patient who had obvious hematuresis for 1 month after the operation and then it was resolved spontaneously at 3 months. There was only one patient who had a radiologic failure in group B, with the cyst of ∼2 cm at 3 months, and his cyst cannot be seen in CT imaging at 12 months without further treatment. There was no statistically significant difference in the rate of effective operation and complication between the two groups. The operation of flexible ureteroscopic holmium laser incision for SRC had the advantages of less blood loss, short operation time, with a similar rate of operative success and radiologic success after the operation, compared with the process of laparoscopic decortication. It was a good option for urologists to deal with endogenous renal cysts.