Age at orchidopexy in the UK: has new evidence changed practice?

Introduction: Research suggesting progressive deterioration in an undescended testis has led to the reduction in the target age for orchidopexy to 6-12 months of age. This age was selected as normal testicular descent is unlikely after 3 months of age and it is timed to prevent early gonadocyte developmental delay as suggested by Hutson and Hasthorpe. This study aims to determine the current age at orchidopexy in one UK training centre and whether changing targets have altered practice.

British Association of Paediatric Urologists consensus statement on the management of the primary obstructive megaureter.

Introduction: It is well-known that the majority of congenital megaureters may be managed conservatively, but the indications and surgical options in patients requiring intervention are less well defined. Hence this topic was selected for discussion at the 2012 consensus meeting of the British Association of Paediatric Urologists (BAPU). Our aim was to establish current UK practice and derive a consensus management strategy.

Button vesicostomy: 13 years of experience.

Introduction: Over recent years the button vesicostomy has become an alternative management option in children with poor bladder emptying, when clean intermittent catheterisation (CIC) cannot be initiated for reasons of age, sensation, or urethral anatomy. This study reviews recent experience of this technique and evaluates its use.

Methods: Retrospective review of patients who had a button vesicostomy to permit bladder drainage between 1998 and 2011.

Cultural bias in the AAP's 2012 Technical Report and Policy Statement on male circumcision.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recently released its new Technical Report and Policy Statement on male circumcision, concluding that current evidence indicates that the health benefits of newborn male circumcision outweigh the risks. The technical report is based on the scrutiny of a large number of complex scientific articles. Therefore, while striving for objectivity, the conclusions drawn by the 8 task force members reflect what these individual physicians perceived as trustworthy evidence.

What is the evidence for radical surgery in the management of localized embryonal bladder/prostate rhabdomyosarcoma?

As survival outcomes for bladder/prostate rhabdomyosarcoma have improved over the last 40 years, the emphasis has shifted to minimizing treatment related morbidity. We undertook a critical review of the current literature to examine the role of radical pelvic surgery to achieve local control. We illustrate that there appears to be no difference in overall survival or event free survival when comparing differing modalities utilized in local disease control, microscopic disease clearance does not correlate with improved outcomes, and the morbidity associated with radical surgery for BP RMS is significantly greater than for a conservative method of local control.

Long-term functional outcome of sacrococcygeal teratoma in a UK regional center (1993 to 2006).

Background: Sacrococcygeal teratoma (SCT) is the commonest neonatal neoplasm. Its long-term effects are important in prenatal counseling and the delivery of an appropriate postoperative plan.

Aim: To determine the long-term functional outcome after SCT excision in a UK regional center.

Button vesicostomy: a continent urinary stoma.

Objective: A modified technique of vesicostomy is described using a gastrostomy button, which could be used as a continent urinary stoma in children with incomplete voiding.

Patients And Methods: From 1998 to 2005, 21 children aged between 4 days and 16 years underwent insertion of button vesicostomy to permit bladder drainage. They had incomplete bladder emptying and clean intermittent urethral catheterization (CIC) could not be established.

The incidence of complications following primary inguinal herniotomy in babies weighing 5 kg or less.

The aim of this study was to quantify the incidence of complications following inguinal herniotomy in small babies weighing 5 kg or less. This was a retrospective review of inguinal herniotomies performed in our unit between December 1997 and March 2002 on babies weighing 5 kg or less. A total of 154 patients underwent hernia repair, of which 125 patients (221 hernias) were available for review (81%).

Left-sided gastroschisis and pseudoexstrophy: a rare combination of anomalies.

Pseudoexstrophy is a rare variant of the exstrophy/epispadias complex, comprised of the musculoskeletal defects of classic exstrophy but with an intact bladder and urethra. We present a case of a neonate with left-sided gastroschisis and pseudoexstrophy, the first reported combination of these two anomalies. The anomalies in this case were unusual but highlight the importance of careful clinical evaluation before and during surgery so as to carefully define the anatomy of the abnormalities, which will assist in planning surgery and further postoperative management.

Use of sarcoma-based chemotherapy in a case of congenital mesoblastic nephroma with liver metastases.

Congenital mesoblastic nephroma was originally considered to be a benign neoplasm. A more aggressive cellular form, however, that has a close relationship to congenital fibrosarcoma, is widely described. Previous reported sites of metastases are the lungs, heart, brain, and bone.