Lower Urinary Tract Endoscopic Procedures in Jos

Abstract

Background: Lower urinary tract endoscopy has become an important tool in everyday urologic practice. It offers unique opportunities for urologists to clinch diagnosis and /or offer therapeutic interventions. The objective of this study was to review the profile of lower urinary tract endoscopic procedures in two tertiary hospitals in Jos, North-Central Nigeria.
Methodology: A 2 year retrospective analysis of all patients who had diagnostic or therapeutic lower urinary tract endoscopy at the Jos University Teaching Hospital and Bingham University Teaching Hospital from January 2009- December 2010 was carried out. Indications for the procedure, type of anaesthesia, type of irrigation fluid used, and complications encountered during the procedure were noted.
Results: Four hundred and forty six medical notes were available for review. Diagnostic procedures made up 304 (68.2%) and therapeutic procedures 142 (31.8%). Urethrocystoscopy was the most common diagnostic procedure constituting 54.5%, while visual internal urethrotomy (VIU) for anterior urethral strictures was the most common therapeutic procedure (31.6%). Local anaesthesia with mild sedation was the most common form of anaesthesia used (94.4%). Normal saline was the most common irrigation fluid used, and non significant bleeding was the most common complication occurring in 22.2% of cases.
Conclusion: Lower urinary tract endoscopy for diagnostic or therapeutic interventions in diseases of the urethra, prostate and bladder is commonly done in Jos with minimal complications.