RADIOGRAPHIC APPROACH TO INJURIES OF THE PROSTATOMEMBRANOUS URETHRA IN CHILDREN

Initial non-operative treatment (suprapubic cystostomy drainage only) is favored for prostatomembranous urethral injuries in children and adolescents. Non-operative treatment usually results in uncomplicated strictures that can be corrected by a 1-stage transperineal or transpubic operation 4 to 6 mo. later. A hands-off diagnostic approach, which relies on excretory urography and retrograde injection urethrography to demonstrate partial and complete tears, eliminates the need for blind passage of catheters, an invasive procedure that may lead to complicated strictures unsuitable for a 1-stage repair. If a 1-stage repair is planned, it is necessary to determine the length of the stricture, whether there are local complications and whether the anterior urethra can be widely mobilized. The radiographic techniques used to plan a corrective operation and to evaluate the results are described.