Intraoperative management of renal gunshot injuries: is mandatory exploration of Gerota's fascia necessary?

Background: Many trauma surgeons and trauma centers use routine exploration of Gerota's fascia (GE) for renal gunshot wounds (RGSW). The purpose of this study was to assess whether RGSW can be selectively explored for patients who undergo exploratory laparotomy.

Methods: Retrospective 10-year review of all patients who underwent exploratory laparotomy for abdominal gunshot wounds and had RGSW selectively explored.

Results: Sixty-three patients with RGSW underwent exploratory laparotomy. Twenty-eight (44%) underwent GE vs 35 (56%) who did not. Eight (29%) mortalities occurred with GE and 5 (14%) without GE (P < .05). Of GE patients, 14 (50%) had nephrectomy and 14 (50%) had renorrhaphy. Average hospital length of stay with GE was 16.7 days vs 17.9 without GE. Three (9%) renal-associated complications occurred without GE and 1 (4%) with GE.

Conclusions: Most patients who suffer RGSW do not require exploration of GE during abdominal exploration. Complication rates due to nonexploration of RGSW are very low with infrequent need for surgical intervention due to renal-associated complications. High nephrectomy rates may be avoided when GE is averted.