Successful Salvage of Kidney Allografts Threatened by Ureteral Stricture Using Pyelovesical Bypass

Ureteral stricture is the most common urologic complication after renal transplantation. When endourologic management fails, open ureteral reconstruction remains the standard treatment. The complexity of some of these procedures makes it necessary to explore other means of repair. This study evaluated the intermediate‐term outcome of subcutaneous pyelovesical bypass graft (SPBG) on renal transplant recipients. We reviewed 8 patients (6 male and 2 female; mean age 52 years) with refractory ureteral strictures postrenal transplantation, who received SPBG as salvage therapy. All patients failed endourologic management and half failed open management of their strictures. After a mean follow‐up of 19.4 months, 7 out of 8 renal grafts have good function with mean GFR of 58.5 mL/min/1.73 m2, without evidence of obstruction or infection. One patient lost his graft due to persistent infection of the SPBG and one patient developed a recurrent urinary tract infection managed with long‐term antibiotics. SPBG offers a last resort in the treatment of ureteral stricture after renal transplantation refractory to conventional therapy. In 7 of 8 kidney transplants with refractory ureteral strictures, subcutaneous pyelovesical bypass graft using an artificial ureter resulted in good long‐term function without evidence of obstruction or infection.