Etiology and Evaluation of Female Urethral Strictures

Purpose of Review This goal of this review is to summarize the current literature on the diagnosis and evaluation of female urethral stricture. Recent Findings Female urethral stricture is a rare condition, which can present with a wide variety of symptoms, including both obstructive and irritative voiding symptoms, pain, or infection. Initial evaluation with post-void residual and uroflowmetry are good screening tests but are unable to diagnose stricture. Diagnosis often requires more than one modality, most commonly cystoscopy and voiding cystourethrogram, with or without urodynamics. Ultrasound is a newer diagnostic tool that can aid in diagnosis and surgical planning. Summary Female urethral stricture is a rare pathology and requires a high-clinical suspicion for accurate diagnosis. While there is a lack of consensus on clear diagnostic criteria, multiple modalities are often used to establish a diagnosis.