Effect of routine insertion of a double-J stent after living related renal transplantation

It is still not clear whether double-J stents (DJS) are of benefit. We sought to determine whether routine prophylactic use of DJS reduced postoperative complications after renal transplantation. We prospectively evaluated 42 living donor renal transplantations performed between September 2001 and September 2003. The patients were randomly assigned to one of two groups: 21 operations (group 1), included a DJS placed during Lich-Gregoir ureterocystotomy and 21 cases (group 2), a Lich-Gregoir ureterostomy without DJS insertion. Among group 1, the DJS were removed within the first month after transplantation. One patient in group 1 (5%) developed a urinary leakage. In group 2, there was one case of delayed graft function (5%) and one patient developed a hematoma (5%) at the operative site. The group rates for urinary tract infection were not significantly different (P > .05). In the early postoperative period, a renal biopsy was performed if a patient's creatinine level was elevated or remained elevated during 3 days after transplantation. Four patients in group 1 and 10 patients in group 2 required a renal biopsy (P = .04). All four of the group 1 biopsies and three of the group 2 specimens revealed acute rejection. The other seven group 2 biopsies showed tubuloepithelial injury. We suggest that ureteral stasis may cause tubuloepithelial injury and slow down the decrease in creatinine levels. In our model, the DJS did not increase urinary tract infections but provided a smooth decline in creatinine levels, which may reduce the question of acute rejection.