Forgotten ureteric stents in renal transplant recipients: three case reports

Abstract

Ureteric stents are widely used in renal transplantation to minimize the early urological complications. Ureteric stents are removed between two and 12 weeks following trans-plantation, once the vesico-ureteric anastomosis is healed. Ureteric stents are associated with considerable morbidity due to complications such as infection, hematuria, encrustations and migration. Despite the patient having a regular follow-up in the renal transplant clinic, ureteric stents may be overlooked and forgotten. The retained or forgotten ureteric stents may adversely affect renal allograft function and could be potentially life-threatening in immunocompromised transplant recipients with a single transplant kidney. Retrieving these retained ureteric stents could be challenging and may necessitate multimodal urological treatments. We report three cases of forgotten stents in renal transplant recipients for more than four years. These cases emphasize the importance of patient education about the indwelling ureteric stent and possibly providing with a stent card to the patient. Maintaining a stent register, with a possible computer tracking system, is highly recommended to prevent such complications.