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Prostate abscess

Prostate abscess (PA) is a relatively uncommon clinical condition which is often difficult to diagnose because clinical symptoms are non-specific. It may be associated with a significant fatality rate, estimated to be between 3% and 30%, which may reflect its...

Urethroplasty: a review of indications, techniques and outcomes

Urethral stricture is the most common cause of lower urinary tract obstruction in men aged between 20 and 40, carrying an estimated overall prevalence of 0.5% in the UK [1] and results in around 17,000 hospital admissions annually [2]. Endoscopic...

Genital gender affirmation surgery for transgender men

Genital gender affirmation surgery (GAS) is the final step in the transition journey for transgender men. Genital GAS involves a combination of procedures to surgically align physical characteristics with one’s gender identity. These needs change between each individual depending on...

Management of recurrent cystitis

Acute uncomplicated infective cystitis is most commonly seen in healthy women with a frequency of around 0.5-0.7 episodes per woman per year [1]. Around 10% of women report having had an episode of urinary tract infection (UTI) each year and...

Inpatient care of patients with established spinal cord injury - what a general urologist needs to know

Introduction Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating, life-changing condition, which is currently irreversible. Depending on the level of the spinal cord affected (and whether the lesion is complete or incomplete), patients may subsequently develop reduced voluntary motor function, sensory...

Optimising weight loss advice in obese women with urinary incontinence: a review

Background The National Institute for Health & Care Excellence (NICE) guidance specifies that women with a body mass index (BMI) of over 30, combined with urinary incontinence or overactive bladder, should be advised to lose weight [1]. A BMI over...

Metastatic spinal cord compression – a review

Introduction Metastatic spinal cord compression (MSCC) is an oncological emergency that, unless diagnosed early and treated appropriately, can lead to significant morbidity and mortality, including paralysis and bladder and bowel dysfunction. MSCC can be defined as spinal cord or cauda...

Metabolic screening and stone-prevention in urolithiasis patients

The incidence and prevalence of kidney stones is increasing [1,2]. Significant recurrence rates are noted with 14% of patients experiencing a further episode at one year, 35% at five years, and 52% at 10 years [3]. Over 10% of stone...

An update on antibiotic prophylaxis in TRUS-guided prostate biopsy

Since its inception in the 1980s, transrectal ultrasound (TRUS)-guided prostate biopsy has remained the standard tool for the histological diagnosis of prostate cancer. There are several advantages to this technique which have led to the widespread use of TRUS in...

Mechanisms and prevention of catheterisation associated urethral injury (CAUI)

Urethral catheterisation is a common procedure performed by health professionals across different grades and specialties in a variety of clinical settings. An estimated 15-25% of hospitalised patients have a urinary catheter inserted during their inpatient stay and up to 13%...

Cutting-edge or over-hyped? Evaluating the role of robotic surgery in the management of renal cell carcinoma

The quest for a minimally-invasive approach to major abdominal surgery finds its roots at the start of the previous century, when Georg Kelling first described the technique of ‘ceolioscopy’ to inspect intraabdominal organs in 1901 [1]. Since those early days,...

Obesity and Urologic cancers: A student’s perspective on risk, systems and surgical implications

During my clinical placements, I began to notice that some patients did not fit neatly into the scenarios we learned about in lectures. One patient in particular had a raised PSA and several comorbidities, including obesity. What stood out was...