Mucosectomy impairs ileal microcirculation and results in flap contraction after experimental ileocystoplasty.

Introduction: Bladder augmentation with demucosalized ileal flap is a promising alternative approach for mucus free bladder augmentation; however, the contraction of the flap is still a major concern. It has been hypothesized that mucosectomy causes ischemic damage, but no direct histological evidence has been found and attention is now focused on the urothelium cover to prevent the exposure of the denuded surface to urine or the use of balloons to keep the flaps distended.

Objective: Our aim was to study the effect of mucosectomy on the microcirculation of ileal flaps during reverse clam ileocystoplasty using direct intraoperative imaging of the ileum.