Massive Bilateral Hydroureteronephrosis and End-Stage Renal Disease Ensuing From Chronic Schistosomiasis: A Case Report.

Globally, schistosomal infections affect over 200 million people resulting in the loss of 70 million disability-adjusted life years. In the sub-Saharan Africa region, where over 85% of the global schistosomal infections are found, it is estimated that about 120 million people become symptomatic, over 20 million have severe disease, and nearly 200 000 die every year. Renal impairment is a severe consequence of schistosomiasis occurring in about 6% of all infected individuals and in 15% of those with the hepatosplenic form. We present a case of massive bilateral hydroureteronephrosis and end-stage renal disease resulting from chronic schistosomiasis in a 38-year-old male of African origin. A 38-year-old male rice farmer of African origin presented with a history of elevated blood pressure, abdominal swelling, and reduced urinary output for about 10 months. Abdominal examination revealed an intraabdominal mass measuring 30 cm × 17 cm extending from the right hypochrondrium region downward to right inguinal outward to umbilicus crossing the midline. He had an estimated glomerular filtration rate of 3.9 mL/min, hemoglobin of 6.78 g/dL, and had multiple electrolyte abnormalities. A computed tomography intravenous urogram scan of the abdomen revealed hepatomegaly (18 cm), bilateral renal enlargement with hydroureteronephrosis, and multiple calcifications on the urinary bladder. A rectal biopsy isolated haematobium eggs and confirmed the diagnosis. Urinary schistosomiasis can have distressing effects on the urinary system in particular and survival prospects in general. In view of this, extensive evaluation of the genitourinary system is pivotal for timely diagnosis and prompt management particularly in residents of schistosoma-endemic communities presenting with obstructive uropathy.

The unacknowledged impact of urinary schistosomiasis in children: 5 cases from Kumasi, Ghana.

Urinary schistosomiasis is a parasitic disease caused by Shistosoma haematobium. It is prevalent in several parts of Africa particularly in areas where there are large water bodies. In most affected communities, the condition is often accepted as normal since to them, all growing children pass blood in their urine and "grow out of it". Mass treatment of school children has been a regular exercise often undertaken by stake holders to decrease the disease burden and reduce transmission in selected communities. Urinary schistosomiasis can have devastating impact on the urinary tract which is often unacknowledged and unevaluated. Such omission could have implication for progressive renal damage which, if not detected and treated, could lead to end stage renal failure and death. We present five (5) cases of urinary schistosomiasis with severe obstructive uropathy seen at the paediatric nephrology/urology units of Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Ghana. All five cases had some degree of anaemia and hypertension. Two of the five cases presented with end stage renal failure and died subsequently whilst two underwent successful surgery. One made a spontaneous recovery from the urinary obstruction though still has significant renal impairment. This potential devastating effect of urinary schistosomiasis on the kidneys calls for thorough evaluation and assessment of each confirmed case to include blood pressure measurement, full blood count, and ultrasonography of the urinary system. Mass screening programmes should be combined with portable ultrasonography of the kidneys, ureters and bladder.

An unusual presentation of genitourinary schistosomiasis in a Caucasian woman in the UK.

A young woman who presented with loin pain and pyuria after a prolonged period of investigations and treatment, finally having a nephrectomy for non-functioning kidney, was revealed to have schistosomial infestation with an adult worm in the ureter. Unusually, she only developed bladder manifestations later.

[Diagnostic image (192). A man with intermittent gross hematuria. Urogenital schistosomiasis]. / Diagnose in beeld (192). Een man met intermitterende macroscopische hematurie. Urogenitale schistosomiasis.

In a 17-year-old boy from Angola with intermittent gross haematuria, intravenous urography and cystoscopy revealed obstructive uropathy due to schistosomiasis.

Schistosomiasis--an unusual cause of ureteral obstruction: a case history and perspective.

A male, 32 years of age, presented with dysuria and abdominal pain, but no gross hematuria. He emigrated three years earlier from Somalia, East Africa, and was currently employed as a poultry processor in a rural Wisconsin community. The patient denied any trauma, sexual activity, or family history of significant illness. Abdominal and genitourinary exams were normal with negative tests for gonococcus and chlamydia. Urinalysis demonstrated microhematuria. A urogram and retrograde pyelogram revealed a mildly dilated right ureter down to the ureterovesical junction. Cystoscopy showed punctate white lesions on the bladder urothelium. Ureteroscopy was used to biopsy abnormal tissue in the distal ureter and bladder. Biopsy tissue demonstrated deposits of Schistosoma haematobium eggs. No ova were seen in collected urine specimens. The patient was successfully treated with praziquantel and will be monitored for sequelae of the disease. Schistosomiasis (Bilharziasis) can be expected to be seen with increasing frequency in the United States with the continuing influx of immigrants and refugees, as well as the return of travelers and soldiers from endemic areas. While no intermediate snail host exists for the transmission of Schistosoma sp. in the United States, the continued importation of exotic animals including snails from Africa, as well as the ability of schistosomes to shift host species warrants concern. Additionally, increasing disease associated with non-human bird schistosomes of the same genus seen in the midwestern United States is occurring throughout Europe. One should be aware that praziquantel may not always be available or effective in the treatment of schistosomiasis. It behooves the practicing clinician to remain updated on the status of this widespread zoonosis.

Endoluminal ultrasonography with reusable probe: preliminary results.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Endoluminal ultrasound probes have been disposable, making their regular use costly. We describe the technique and preliminary results of a reusable endoluminal ultrasound probe for examining ureteral anatomy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The 2.4-mm (7.2F) or 3-mm (9F) probe (Olympus, Tokyo) is passed up the ureter after a retrograde ureteropyelogram has been obtained. No intraoperative preparation of the probe is needed. An axial image as little as 1 cm or as much as 10 cm around the ureter can be obtained. Over the last 20 months, 50 procedures using endoluminal ultrasonography were performed in our unit: 36 (72%) for uretero-pelvic junction (UPJ) obstruction, 10 (20%) for upper-tract filling defects, and the remaining 4 (8%) for ureteral strictures. RESULTS: Endoluminal ultrasonography detected crossing vessels at the UPJ in 19 (53%) and a septum in 9 (25%) of the 36 renal units with UPJ obstruction. In eight of the 36 renal units with UPJ obstruction (22%), endopyelotomy was not done because of the presence of crossing vessels. A further 4 renal units (11%) had the direction of the incision modified because of the ultrasound findings. In the cases with upper-tract transitional-cell carcinoma, images correlated well with the nephroureterectomy specimen. The probe had to be replaced twice. CONCLUSIONS: This endoluminal ultrasound system produces clear images of the ureteral and periureteral anatomy. The reusable aspect of the probe removes an important obstacle to its common use for evaluating a variety of upper urinary tract abnormalities.

Long-term results of endourologic and percutaneous management of ureteral strictures in bilharzial patients.

We have managed 164 bilharzial ureteral strictures endourologically. The site was at the pelviureteral junction in 4, at the pelvic inlet in 22, juxtavesical in 78, and intramural in 60. These lesions were categorized according to the line of management. Type I or simple stricture, present in 116 cases, was managed by retrograde bougie dilation to 16F. Dilation was preceded by transurethral ureterotomy in 54 cases. Type II or difficult strictures (24 cases) were managed by percutaneous antegrade dilation. Type III or complicated strictures (24 cases) were managed by antegrade placement of a guidewire down to the bladder followed by transureteral meatotomy and bougie dilation in one sitting under C-arm fluoroscopy. Three types of stenting procedures and diversion were used according to the length of the stricture and the quality of renal function. After 6 to 72 months, an overall successful clinical outcome with decompression of the upper urinary system and improved drainage pattern was achieved in 87.8% (144 cases) v only 50% in patients with strictures longer than 2 cm. Postoperative reflux was seen in 21 cases (18%) of Type I strictures compared with 4 (17%) of Type II and 13 (54%) of Type III strictures. We concluded that this scheme of combined endourologic management for ureteral strictures is safe, simple, and less traumatic and produces excellent results. It should be the approach of choice, although it needs special equipment and operator experience. Open surgery should be restricted to the lesions that prove undilatable on both retrograde and antegrade procedures.

Ureteral obstruction in hydatid disease.

A case of ureteric obstruction in renal hydatid disease is reported. This unusual complication possibly occurred following surgery. To the best of our knowledge, this has not been previously reported.

The value of parenchymal transit time index of Tc-99m DTPA diuretic renography in the evaluation of surgery in chronic bilharzial obstructive uropathy.

Selection of patients with chronic bilharzial uropathy (CBU) for surgery is a difficult problem due to the presence of grossly dilated urinary tracts without a significant obstruction in most of the cases. In this prospective study of 40 patients with CBU, the time-activity curve (TAC) patterns of the pre- and postoperative Tc-99m DTPA diuretic renography (RDR) studies were compared with the corresponding parenchymal transit time indices (PTTI). The aims were to find out which of these renographic parameters was more accurate in identifying obstruction and which was better in predicting the outcome of surgery. PTTI was more sensitive than TAC in identifying obstruction (96% and 92%, respectively) but it was less specific (78% and 98%). The detection accuracy of RDR for obstruction using TAC patterns was 96% compared to 84% using PTTI. Being independent of renal uptake function, PTTI could not predict the outcome of surgery as TAC could. In contrast to PTTI, TAC patterns could differentiate obstructed kidneys from severely nephropathic kidneys. However, PTTI was useful in identifying kidneys with residual nephropathy.

Patterns of Schistosoma haematobium egg distribution in the human lower urinary tract. II. Obstructive uropathy.

In a series of 32 unselected consecutive autopsies of Egyptian male adults, we found a significant prevalence of schistosomal obstructive uropathy (SOU) and of precursor lesions of stenosis, fibrosis and induration of the ureters (62.5%). Lower urinary tracts with obstructive uropathy had a significantly higher total egg burden (TEB) than did lower urinary tracts with any other type of gross lesion (i.e., benign prostatic hypertrophy, other urethral outlet obstruction, or SOU precursor lesions). In turn, lower urinary tracts with any type of gross change had higher egg burdens than did tracts which appeared grossly normal. Lower urinary tracts with any type of gross lesion had significantly larger seminal vesicles than did tracts which were grossly normal. Moreover, relative weight of seminal vesicles could be correlated with the S. haematobium egg burdens in the seminal vesicles. In a series of lower urinary tracts taken from unselected consecutive American autopsies, seminal vesicle weight could be correlated with increase in prostatic weight in those tracts with prostatic hypertrophy; the same correlation could not be found in tracts without prostatic hypertrophy. Thus, seminal vesicle hypertrophy appears to correlate with obstructive uropathy in general, not solely obstructive uropathy of schistosomal origin. Digital evaluation of seminal vesicle size may be useful in the clinical evaluation of such patients.

The pathobiology of Schistosoma haematobium infection in humans.

Schistosoma haematobium infection is a common occurrence in Africa and the Middle East and is the world's leading cause of hematuria. Since more North Americans are venturing into endemic areas and more residents of endemic areas are seeking medical care in North America, pathologists must be able not only to diagnose urinary schistosomiasis but also to provide advice as to further therapy. These endeavors mandate knowledge of the pathobiologic features of the disease. The severity and frequency of the sequelae of urinary schistosomiasis (hydroureter, hydronephrosis, bladder ulcer, and polyposis) and of its complications (bacterial urinary tract infection, renal failure, urothelial cancers) depend on the intensity of infection, i.e., worm burden and tissue egg burden, and the duration of infection. Significant differences in gross and microscopic morphology, clinical laboratory findings, and optimal mode of treatment exist between active (during active egg deposition) and inactive (after cessation of oviposition) disease. Moreover, nearly half of the severe sequelae and complications occur during the inactive phase of the disease, when diagnosis is most difficult. The manifestations of this disease are manifold and complex, and firm understanding of the pathobiologic features is necessary if pathologists are to understand their role in the direction of treatment.

[Surgical indications in urogenital schistosomiasis in West Africa (author's transl)]. / Les indications chirurgicales dans la bilharziose urogénitale en Afrique de l'ouest.

Surgical indications in urogenital schistosomiasis are discussed after 12 years of experience in Senegal hospitals. Stenosis or achalasia of lower ureter might cause ureterohydronephrosis which appears to be the main sequella. The local hospitals conditions and the difficulties met with in the long-range surveillance of the patients both require a prudent approach. The replacement plastics with intestine is the logic and ideal solution, but other and simpler techniques are available and may be selected according to the localization and to the value of renal functions.

Surgical pathology of schistosomal obstructive uropathy: a clinicopathologic correlation.

Schistosomal obstructive uropathy was studied by clinical, laboratory epidemiologic and pathologic analysis in 155 Egyptian patients treated surgically. Most patients were men; rural farmers or laborers. All had severe urinary schistosomiasis with heavy burdens of Schistosoma haematobium eggs in their urinary tracts. Schistosomal incomplete ureteral stenosis and schistosomal stenosis with ureterolithiasis were the most important obstructive lesions; these lesions were symmetrical and most frequent in the interstitial ureters decreasing proximally. The pathogenesis of these lesions is dependent upon focal destruction of ureteral muscle. The ureteral lesions proximal and consequent to schistosomal obstructive lesions are hydroureters resulting from active dilatation (due to increased hydrostatic pressure consequent to obstruction) and passive dilatation (due to loss of circular muscle action in sites of oviposition in the proximal ureter). Various combinations of these lesions with superimposed effects of bacterial infection and ureterolithiasis produce the spectrum of ureteral lesions attributable to urinary schistosomiasis.