Characteristics of Idiopathic Urethral Strictures: A Link to Remote Perineal Trauma?

To characterize the physical features and reconstructive outcomes of a series of idiopathic urethral strictures (IUS) in an effort to elucidate the nature of this common yet poorly understood entity.

We retrospectively reviewed our urethroplasty database to identify men undergoing initial urethral reconstruction from 2007 to 2014 at 1 of 3 hospitals (N = 514). Patients were stratified by stricture etiology, including IUS, acute trauma, iatrogenic, hypospadias, balanitis xerotica obliterans, and radiation. IUS that had a known history of subacute or repetitive blunt force to the perineum (horseback riding, avid cycling, motocross, etc.) were subclassified as subacute or repetitive perineal trauma (SRPT).

Among 466 men undergoing initial reconstruction with available data, 215 (46%) were IUS cases. The median delay between IUS diagnosis and urethroplasty was 5.2 years, during which time men underwent a median of 2 endoscopic treatments. A total of 51 (24%) IUS cases recalled a distinct history of SRPT. Men with SRPT were slightly younger (median 43 vs 48 years, P = .01) but were remarkably similar in terms of urethral stricture length (2 vs 2 cm, P = .15), location (bulbar 96% vs 89%, P = .41), and treatment success (92% vs 88%; P = .61). Bulbar (-)SRPT and (+)SRPT IUS had similar clinical and morphometric features as those with known acute bulbar trauma with excellent 24-month stricture recurrence-free survival rates (93% vs 92% vs 97%, P = .19).

IUS have clinical features suggesting that many may be related to unrecognized or repetitive perineal trauma. Although treatment tends to be delayed, IUS have excellent urethroplasty success because most are short bulbar strictures amenable to anastomotic urethroplasty.