Urethral Stricture Treatment in Mumbai

The Urinary system is constituted by the kidneys, ureters and the urethra. The urethra is a tubular structure through which the urine is expelled outside the body.

What is Urethral Stricture ?

Urethral stricture is a condition which basically consists of a narrowing of the urethra.

This can be caused by injury, instrumentation, infection, and certain non-infectious forms of urethritis.

Currently, it is considered that urethral strictures develop secondarily to a process of scarring or fibrosis of the urethral mucosa and/or periurethral tissues, so any process that conditions a trauma can initiate a urethral stricture.

What Causes Urethral Stricture

An urethral stricture is a constriction of the urethra. The cause is usually tissue inflammation or scarring. Many factors can cause scar tissue. Men who have penile implants and young boys with hypospadias surgery (a procedure to correct an underdeveloped urethra) are more likely to develop urethral strictures.

The urethral stricture can be caused by a straddle injury. An example of a straddle injury is falling on a bicycle bar or getting hit near the scrotum

Treatment of Urethral Stricture

So, here´s a brief explanation of 3 treatment options:

• Urethral dilatations: The first treatment described for this pathology is periodic urethral dilation, which is recommended in stenoses smaller than 2 cm. A complication rate or failure rate has been reported with this treatment in 32% of patients. Some authors consider it as a non-curative therapy, so it has been replaced by balloon dilatations, stents, and direct visual internal urethrotomy (DVIU).
• Internal urethrotomy: It is one of the most commonly performed procedures for Stricture Urethra as it is considered simple, safe with a short and simple convalescence period despite having a risk of recurrence during the first 6 months of around 50%. The objective of this technique is to allow re-epithelialization of urethra before a scar is formed again.
• Urethroplasty: The technique consists of opening the urethra at the level of the penis or perineum, with excision of the segment that is stenosed (blocked). Depending on the location and length of the stenosis, the reconstruction can be performed in a single time or it may be necessary to leave the urethra open to facilitate its regeneration, proceeding to the final reconstruction at a later stage.