Journal Reviews
Changing concepts in endourological training – SIMULATE trial
Skill acquisition for endourological procedures is markedly different from traditional open surgical procedures, questioning the applicability of the presently used apprenticeship model. The lack of a universal simulation training curriculum has hampered its adoption into mainstream urological training. This study...
How successful is the transition to adult urology care in spina bifida?
These authors from Indianapolis, USA, aimed to assess rates and predictors of successful transition into adult care of spina bifida patients. They did this by a retrospective review of 77 patients discharged from a multidisciplinary paediatric clinic at a mean...
Who should be taking care of the adolescent with testicular torsion?
From time to time (as paediatric surgeons), we receive referrals from regional hospitals to explore the testis in older boys. Given the time-critical nature of the condition, patients should benefit from assessment and surgery performed locally (when possible). Inter-hospital transfer...
Optimisation of childhood spina bifida management – a prospective trial
Routh et al. describe a prospective trial which aims to determine the optimal urological management for children with spina bifida. The primary aim of neuropathic bladder management is to provide the patient with the best long-term quality of life with...
Laparoscopic transposition of renal lower pole crossing vessels
The vascular hitch procedure for pelvi-ureteric junction obstruction (PUJO) was initially described by Hellstroem in1951 and has become popular again since the introduction of laparoscopy. There is still much controversy as to its efficiency. The authors of this paper analyse...
Cystolithotripsy using the holmium laser: evolving uses for the laser lithotrite
This small prospective study examined 20 patients who were undergoing laser cystolithotripsy for bladder stones. Laser lithotripsy was performed using either a 365 or 550µm holmium:YAG laser fibre with a power setting of 1.0J and a frequency of 10Hz. Stone...
Urology MDTs: what members think
This study aimed to examine the functionality of urology cancer multidisciplinary team meetings (MDTs). Evidence has suggested that urology MDTs are not as well structured as other surgical disciplines. MDT members were asked their views on if there were any...
Adolescents and adults in paediatric urology clinics
This elegant descriptive paper retrospectively reviewed cases seen in a paediatric urology clinic with respect to age, diagnosis and presentations in a major Brazilian city. Of 521 patients, 404 were <12 years old, 103 were between 12-18 and 14 were...
Long-term consequences of posterior urethral valves
These two papers give a very good summary of the long-term effects of posterior urethral valves (PUV) into adulthood and are worth a read. Pereira et al. It is well known that the consequences of posterior urethral valves extend well...
