[Urinary diversion--the key to reducing surgical complications--ileal conduit]

The ileal conduit, first described by Bricker in 1950, continues to be the most common form of incontinent urinary diversion. We have evaluated the surgical methods, pre- and post-operative management, complications and quality of life in the patients treated with ileal conduit urinary diversion. Between January, 1980 and December, 2004, ileal conduit was performed in 97 cases (82 male, 15 female) and median follow-up was 37.7 months (11 to 121 months). Early complications occurred in 38 patients (39%); however, none of them resulted in post-operative death within one month. Late complications were noticed in 60 patients (62%). The most frequent complications include stoma related complications (34 cases, 35%). Renal dysfunction was seen in only 7 cases (7.2%). A questionnaire survey on 13 patients with ileal conduit revealed that 93% of them were satisfied with the current conditions. The ileal conduit is considered an appropriate method of continent urinary diversion because of the simplicity of surgical method, few complications and high satisfaction in the quality of life.