Ureteral Safety Stent

University of Rochester
posted on 10/05/2011

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The ureter is a delicate structure that is very commonly involved in inflammatory masses or malignancies and obscured by obesity. Hundreds of thousands of operations are performed annually that risk ureteral injury: hysterectomy, colon surgery for cancer or inflammation (e.g. diverticulitis), aortic aneurysm, and many others procedures are in this category. Additionally, certain operations that are done on the ureter benefit enormously from a way to assess the completion of a “watertight” repair. All surgeons involved in these operations (Ob/ Gyn, General Surgery, Urology, Vascular, Colorectal) desire to avoid the catastrophe that can accompany unrecognized ureteral injury, and seek a simple way to protect themselves from it. Currently, more than 2/3 of all ureteral injuries are not recognized when they occur, due to inadequate technology to test for their presence.

This invention maximizes the ability to prospectively identify the ureter in a safe fashion during surgery. Uniquely, it allows easy and accurate assessment of the presence or absence of any damage to this critical structure at any point during and at the conclusion of surgery, and then verification of the integrity of any planned or unplanned repairs to the ureter when these are necessary.