Renal infection after ileal conduit urinary diversion. An autopsy study

Autopsy records from cases with urinary bladder carcinoma, consisting of patients operated upon with conduit urinary diversion and controls without diversion, were studied. We found macroscopical evidence of upper urinary tract infection (renal abscesses and/or pus-filled pelves/ureters and/or reddish mucosa in pelves/ureters) in 18 of 21 conduit cases without evidence of cancer at autopsy and in 14 of 50 control cases. The difference is statistically significant (p less than 0.0005). Abscesses were found more often in conduit cases (10/21) than in non-diverted cases (8/50) (p less than 0.01). The known connection between dilated ureters and/or pelves and urinary tract infection was demonstrated in non-diverted cases.