[Statistic study of 1,272 cases of foreign bodies in the bladder or urethra]

The foreign bodies in the bladder or urethra found in the clinical observation of the 41 cases treated between April, 1963 and October, 1982, in our Department and those of 1,231 cases so far reported in Japan, were studied statistically. The incidence was higher in males than in females, the ratio being 1.7:1. This ratio has been unchanged for the past 20 years. Of the foreign bodies removed, the cases of wax and rubber objects have been on the decrease. The urethra has come to occupy an increasingly large percentage of the introductory routes during the past 20 years. Removal through the urethra has become more common owing to the development in the transurethral appliances.