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Retzius-sparing robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) has been reported to exhibit better postoperative urinary continence, but the reasons behind this are unknown. This study included 254 cases who underwent RARP and underwent postoperative dynamic MRI. We measured the urine loss ratio (ULR) immediately after postoperative urethral catheter removal and investigated its affecting factors and the mechanisms. Nerve-sparing (NS) techniques was performed in 175 (69%) unilateral and 34 (13%) bilateral cases, whereas Retzius-sparing in 58 (23%) cases. The median ULR early after indwelling catheter removal in all patients was 4.0%. The multivariate analysis was performed on factors that reduce ULR and found that the following factors were associated with ULR: younger age, NS and Retzius-sparing, which were significant. Additionally, dynamic MRI findings showed that membranous urethral length and the anterior rectal wall movement toward the pubic bone during abdominal pressure were significant factors. The movement observed on the dynamic MRI during abdominal pressure was thought to reflect an effective urethral sphincter closure mechanism. Long membranous urethral length and an effective urethral sphincter closure mechanism during abdominal pressure were considered effective for favorable urinary continence after RARP. NS and Retzius-sparing were clearly shown to have an additive effect in preventing urinary incontinence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We performed test clamp procedure in robot-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN) to prevent massive bleeding during tumor resection and to omit dissection of non-feeding arteries around the tumor. We subsequently analyzed the safety and usefulness of the procedure. The Test clamp procedure was performed for 1 to 3 min during renal artery test ischemia prior to the actual ischemia and tumor resection. We confirmed the disappearance of blood flow around the renal tumor using color Doppler ultrasonography. If arterial blood flow around the tumor remained, we surveyed the site for other arteries that needed to be clamped and repeated the test clamp procedure until renal blood flow around the tumor disappeared. We retrospectively analyzed consecutive RAPN cases performed from July 2016 to March 2020 at our institutions and reviewed medical records. The clinical data of the RAPN cases were statistically analyzed. Sixty-four RAPN cases underwent the test clamp procedure, which was categorized as the TEST group. Test clamping was performed safely without any clamping-related complications in all cases. Eleven cases (17%) underwent partial ischemia, which was a significantly higher number than that in the control group. Massive bleeding during tumor resection was more frequent in the control group. Postoperative deterioration of estimated glomerular filtration rate did not differ significantly between both groups. Although further investigation was still necessary, our findings indicate that the test clamp procedure may be a safe and secure procedure to perform in RAPN for both patients and surgeons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Retzius-sparing robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RS-RARP) exhibits better postoperative urinary continence than conventional RARP (C-RARP) via the anterior approach. However, the reasons behind this are unknown. Herein, early postoperative urinary incontinence and anatomical differences of 51 propensity score-matched C-RARP and RS-RARP cases were compared. Dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed before and after surgery to examine the pelvic anatomical changes under abdominal pressure. The median urine loss ratios in the early postoperative period after C-RARP and RS-RARP were 11.0% and 1.0%, respectively. Postoperative MRI revealed that the anterior bladder wall was fixed in a higher position after RS-RARP compared with its position after C-RARP. Dynamic MRI after C-RARP showed that cephalocaudal compression of the bladder while applying abdominal pressure caused the membranous urethra to expand and the urine to flow out. After RS-RARP, the rectum moved forward during abdominal pressure, and the membranous urethra was compressed by closure from behind. This is the first study using dynamic MRI to reveal the importance of high attachment of the anterior bladder wall for the urethral closure mechanism during abdominal pressure. RS-RARP, which can completely preserve this mechanism, is less likely to cause stress urinary incontinence compared with C-RARP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: No standard treatment exists for locally advanced prostate cancer (PC). This study evaluated the long-term treatment outcomes and toxicity in patients with clinically locally advanced and/or lymph node (LN)-positive PC who underwent high-dose-rate brachytherapy (HDR-BT) with external beam radiotherapy (EBRT). Methods: The treatment outcomes and toxicities of 152 patients with PC who underwent HDR-BT with EBRT and had at least 2 years of observation were examined. The treatment dose was 19- and 13-Gy HDR-BT in two and single fractions, respectively, both combined with external irradiation of 46 Gy in 23 fractions. Long-term androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for patients harboring very high-risk tumors was used in combination. Results: The median observation period was 59.7 (24.4–182.1) months. The 5-year prostate cancer-specific and recurrence-free (RFS) survival rates were 99.0% and 91.8%, respectively, with only two PC mortalities. When 5-year RFS was examined for each parameter, RFS was significantly lower in pre-radiotherapy (pre-RT) prostate-specific antigen (PSA) > 0.5 ng/mL (77.1%; p = 0.008), and presence of LN metastasis (68.1%; p = 0.017). Multivariable analysis demonstrated that pre-RT PSA (HR, 4.68; 95% CI, 1.39–15.67; p = 0.012) and presence of LN metastasis (HR, 4.70; 95% CI, 1.24–17.74; p = 0.022) were independent recurrence predictors. The 5-year cumulative incidence rate of grade ≥ 2 toxicities in genitourinary and gastrointestinal tracts were 15.4% and 1.3%, respectively. Conclusions: HDR-BT combined with EBRT and long-term ADT shows promising disease control and tolerant toxicities for clinically locally advanced and LN-positive PC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spermatogenesis, which is a continuous process from undifferentiated spermatogonia to spermatozoa in the seminiferous tubules, declines with age. To investigate changes in spermatogenesis with aging, we reconstructed the seminiferous tubules of 12 mice aged 12 to 30 months from serial sections and examined age-related and region-specific alterations in the seminiferous epithelium and spermatogenic waves in three dimensions. The basic structure of the seminiferous tubules, including the numbers of tubules, terminating points, branching points, and total tubule length, did not change with age. Age-related alterations in spermatogenesis, primarily assessed by the formation of vacuoles in Sertoli cells, were detected in the seminiferous tubules at 12 months. The proportion of altered tubule segments with impaired spermatogenesis further increased by 24 months, but remained unchanged thereafter. Altered tubule segments were preferentially distributed in tubule areas close to the rete testis and those in the center of the testis. Spermatogenic waves became shorter in length with age. These results provide a basis for examining the decline of spermatogenesis not only with aging, but also in male infertility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emergence of malignant ureteral obstruction (MUO) has been reported as a sign of poor prognosis; however, the distribution of survival time in patients with MUO is considerably wide, and no risk classification score has been constructed. To evaluate whether a novel risk classification score for overall survival that we previously developed, is effective in a large cohort. Investigator-initiated, prospective, multicenter diagnostic/prognostic study was conducted. Patients with MUO were divided into three risk groups based on the score calculated using four prognostic factors (PLaCT: Primary site, Laterality, serum Creatinine level, and Treatment for primary site) at the first visit, and prospective follow-up was performed. Overall survival and ureteral stent failure-free survival of each risk group were compared. In total, 300 patients with 21 different primary sites were enrolled. The numbers of patients in good, intermediate, and poor risk groups were 105, 106, and 89, respectively. Median survival times of patients in good, intermediate, and poor risk groups were 406, 221, and 77 days, respectively (P < 0.0001). In 217 patients with ureteral stenting, median ureteral stent failure-free survival times of good, intermediate, and poor risk groups were 385, 183, and 57 days, respectively (P < 0.0001). Limitations include the limited ethnicity and the extended duration of study enrollment. The novel PLaCT risk classification score could divide MUO patients into three risk groups with distinct survival times and ureteral stent patencies. This score will aid in establishing prognosis and treatment strategy for all physicians engaged in cancer treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction and hypothesis: We noninvasively compared urinary flow in both pre- and post-transobturator tape (TOT) procedures in stress urinary incontinence (SUI) patients using previously reported corrected flow-age nomograms in healthy women. Methods: This retrospective cohort study included patients who underwent a successful TOT procedure to treat SUI. Non-instrumented uroflowmetry was performed before and 3 months after surgery. Corrected maximum flow rate (cQmax) and average flow rate (cQave) were calculated using Qmax/√voided volume (VV) and Qave/√VV respectively. The ratio of corrected flow to age-adjusted corrected flow in healthy women was calculated in each patient. Each parameter was compared against pre-TOT and 3-months post-TOT values. Results: Sixty-two patients were eligible for study inclusion. All urinary flow parameters were significantly higher pre-TOT than at 3 months post-TOT. The number of patients with cQmax and cQave over mean flow-age nomogram, compared with healthy women, before the TOT procedure decreased 3 months post-TOT; however, in many patients, cQmax and cQave were higher than in the corrected flow-age nomogram post-TOT. No significant difference in the ratio of cQmax to age-adjusted cQmax between pre- and post-TOT in the normal urinary flow group was observed, but significantly decreased in the high urinary flow group 3 months after TOT. Conclusions: Urinary flow rates were higher in SUI patients compared with age-matched controls and successful TOT procedures normalized urinary flows in patients with high urinary flow. A simple evaluation of urinary flow using a corrected flow-age nomogram may be clinically useful in SUI patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction and hypothesis: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the predictors of de novo stress urinary incontinence (SUI) in patients undergoing a tension-free vaginal mesh procedure (TVM) for pelvic organ prolapse (POP). Methods: Sixty-five patients without SUI were assessed with regard to voiding function by a pressure flow study and clinical characteristics. Results: The mean age of the patients was 67 ± 8.3. Of the 65 patients, 41 (63 %) maintained urinary continence postoperatively and 24 (37 %) showed de novo SUI. In univariate analysis, the de novo SUI group included a significantly higher proportion of patients with preoperative obstruction, defined as moderate or greater obstruction according to the Blaivas nomogram (29 vs 7 %, P = 0.035). In multivariate analysis, urethral obstruction was an independent predictor of de novo SUI with an odds ratio of 12.616 (95 % confidence interval 1.580-268.731). Conclusions: Preoperative evaluation of urethral obstruction will contribute to prediction of de novo SUI combined with a conventional diagnosis of occult SUI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction and hypothesis: We compared pre- and postoperative voiding function in patients with POP and assessed the efficacy of urodynamic studies in these cases. Methods: Forty-six patients treated with the tension-free vaginal mesh (TVM) procedure between January 2009 and February 2010 underwent pressure flow study pre- and postoperatively. Pre- and postoperative voiding functions were assessed according to Schäfer nomograms. Results: The mean postoperative detrusor pressure at maximal flow was decreased significantly compared with that preoperatively. The mean maximum flow rate was also improved significantly and the proportion of normal contractility was increased significantly after the operation, as was the proportion of non-obstructive patients. Conclusions: The TVM procedure for pelvic organ prolapse improved both detrusor contractility and urethral obstruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To analyze the risk factors for HPV infection in the urethra, we examined the prevalence of various microorganisms, for example Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Chlamydia trachomatis, Mycoplasma genitalium, Mycoplasma hominis, Ureaplasma urealyticum, Ureaplasma parvum, Gardnerella vaginalis, and human papillomavirus (HPV) in Japanese male patients with urethritis, and investigated their sexual backgrounds. Rubbed samples obtained from the distal urethra and questionnaires regarding sexual activity and demographic information were collected from 176 participants. N. gonorrhoeae, C. trachomatis, M. genitalium, M. hominis, U. urealyticum, U. parvum, G. vaginalis, and HPV were detected in 19, 26, 18, 12, 12, 8.5, 14, and 20%, respectively, of all cases in this study. Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that more than 4 sexual partners within the last year and presence of N. gonorrhoeae and/or C. trachomatis and/or M. genitalium infections were independent risk factors for urethral HPV infection, with odds ratios of 3.85 (95% CI 1.49-9.94) and 2.41 (95% CI 1.03-5.61), respectively. It is likely that urethral HPV detection is associated with current sexual activity and the presence of N. gonorrhoeae, C. trachomatis, and/or M. genitalium infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tension-free vaginal mesh (TVM) surgery is an effective treatment for pelvic organ prolapse, but carries some complications, including mesh erosion. We report a rare case of mesh erosion to the ureter 8 years after TVM surgery. Late complications after TVM surgery are rare, but serious; therefore, we follow up every 3 months for 1 year after surgery with internal examination, urinalysis, cystoscope, and renal echo. [Extracted from the article]