Retrocaval ureter: a meta-analysis of prevalence

Abstract

Introduction: Retrocaval ureter is a congenital abnormality of the right ureter, which has been shown, in rare cases to cause clinical symptoms, mainly due to the development of ureterohydronephrosis.

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to identify the prevalence of the retrocaval ureter, and to emphasize its clinical and surgical importance.

Design: A meta-analysis of prevalence, on cases obtained from PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases.

Results: A total number of 13 studies contained data that allowed us to estimate the prevalence of the retrocaval ureter, which was identified overall in 9 cases, out of 18,493 subjects. The overall prevalence of retrocaval ureter was 0.13%, with a 95% confidence interval between 0.06 and 0.27%. There was no publication bias, all studies being under the funnel.

Conclusions: The overall prevalence of retrocaval ureter is 0.13%. Even if this is obviously a rare condition, its presence must be suspected by practitioners, especially in the presence of urological symptoms without a clear cause.

Keywords: Circumcaval ureter; Congenital abnormality of the vena cava; Preureteral vena cava; Prevalence; Retrocaval ureter.