[Anterior cutaneous nephrostomy using ringed Gore-Tex. An initial study].

Abstract

With a view to improve the living comfort of patients having undergone a permanent, palliative per-cutaneous derivation, we have carried out a preliminary study of a new kind of urinary drainage. This new system is a nephrostomy that consists of a ringed tube made up of expanded polytetrafluorethylene (Gore-Tex). The improved living comfort of the patients must be based, on the one hand, on a low risk of calcification during a long-lasting contact between the Gore-Tex and urine, this also preventing repeated changes of tubes, and on the other hand, the possibility of a single, anterior apparatus even in case of bilateral derivation, owing to a subcutaneous tunnelling of the tubes as soon as they exit the lumbar region. The risk of displacement is eliminated because of the spontaneous anchoring of the tubes by their rings in the kidney and throughout their subcutaneous course. This preliminary study was carried out in 5 pigs and enabled us to ascertain both the simplicity of setting up this derivation and the efficiency of parenchymal anchoring of the tubes. However, no conclusions may be drawn about the risk of calcification of Gore-Tex in urine because of secondary infections inherent in and associated with the experimental model used.