Long-term outcome of secondary endopyelotomy after failed primary intervention for ureteropelvic junction obstruction.

Objective: To evaluate the long-term outcome of secondary endopyelotomy after failed primary intervention for uretero-pelvic junction (UPJ) obstruction and to assess the effect of preoperative parameters on treatment outcome.

Methods: Twenty patients (13 men, seven women; mean age 30.7 years) who underwent secondary endopyelotomy after the failure of a primary intervention for the treatment of congenital UPJ obstruction were included in this retrospective analysis.

Paradoxical air embolism during percutaneous nephrolithotomy: a case report.

Air embolism is a rare complication of percutaneous nephrolithotomy. Patent foramen ovale, which is necessary in fetal circulation, is a potential route for emboli arising from the venous system to enter the systemic arterial circulation, resulting in paradoxical air embolism syndrome. A case of paradoxical air embolism during percutaneous nephrolithotomy is presented.

Effectiveness of noncontrast computed tomography in evaluation of residual stones after percutaneous nephrolithotomy.

Purpose: We prospectively compared the sensitivity of antegrade pyelography (AGP), plain film radiography (KUB film), and noncontrast thin-slice abdominal CT for detecting residual stones after percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL).

Patients And Methods: We prospectively evaluated 50 patients (53 renal units) who underwent PCNL for radiopaque renal pelvic stones with noncontrast abdominal CT 1 month postoperatively. We compared the number and size of residual fragments, as determined by immediate postoperative AGP and 1-month KUB film and CT scan.

Long-term outcome of endopyelotomy for the treatment of ureteropelvic junction obstruction: how long should patients be followed up?

Purpose: To evaluate the long-term success rate of endopyelotomy for the treatment of ureteropelvic junction (UPJ) obstruction.

Patients And Methods: Between January 1995 and December 2003, 85 endopyelotomies (10 percutaneous, 75 retrograde) were performed in 77 patients with a mean age of 35.2 +/- 13.

Highly sensitive signal detection of duplex dye-labelled DNA oligonucleotides in a PDMS microfluidic chip: confocal surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopic study.

Rapid and highly sensitive detection of duplex dye-labelled DNA sequences in a PDMS microfluidic channel was investigated using confocal surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). This method does not need either an immobilization procedure or a PCR amplification procedure, which are essential for a DNA microarray chip. Furthermore, Raman peaks of each dye-labelled DNA can be easily resolved since they are much narrower than the corresponding broad fluorescence bands.

Analysis of passive mixing behavior in a poly(dimethylsiloxane) microfluidic channel using confocal fluorescence and Raman microscopy.

Confocal fluorescence microscopy (CFM) and confocal Raman microscopy (CRM) have been applied to monitor the laminar flow mixing behavior in a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) microfluidic channel. Two passive PDMS micromixing devices were fabricated for this purpose: a two-dimensional round-wave channel and a three-dimensional serpentine channel. The microscale laminar flow mixing of ethanol and isopropanol was evaluated using the CFM and CRM at various flow rates.

Enhancement of the protein loading density by a pre-cleaning process of a gold substrate: confocal laser scanning microscopic study.

The immobilization of glucose oxidase (GOx), using self assembled monolayers (SAMs) on gold surfaces, was investigated by grazing angle FT-IR spectroscopy, surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy, and atomic force microscopy (AFM) in conjunction with confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). To find an optimum condition for the maximum GOx loading density on gold surfaces, different cleaning protocols were examined. The loading density of GOx on surfaces was investigated by AFM and CLSM.

Endoscopic treatment of vesicoureteral reflux with polydimethylsiloxane in adult women.

Objectives: Subureteral injection of bulking agents to a refluxing ureteral orifice is an attractive alternative to open repair. We record our experience of the endoscopic subureteral injection of polydimethylsiloxane in women for vesicoureteral reflux (VUR).

Methods: From January 1997 to December 2001, 30 women (mean age 34.

Recurrent traumatic urethral strictures near the external sphincter: treatment with a covered, retrievable, expandable nitinol stent--initial results.

Purpose: To investigate the clinical effectiveness of a covered, retrievable, expandable nitinol stent in treating traumatic urethral strictures near the external sphincter.

Materials And Methods: The stent was 10 mm in diameter when fully expanded and 40-50 mm long. To make it removable, two nylon drawstrings were attached to its lower inner margin.

Virtual cystoscopy of the contrast material-filled bladder in patients with gross hematuria.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of virtual cystoscopy of the contrast material-filled bladder in evaluating patients with gross hematuria.

Subjects And Methods: Seventy-three consecutive patients who had gross hematuria and whose upper urinary tracts had a normal appearance on single-detector helical CT scans were prospectively evaluated with virtual cystoscopy. Source CT data for virtual cystoscopy were obtained on a multidetector CT scanner with 1.