Urinary surgery

This article describes diagnosis, prognosis, pathophysiology, and methods to surgically correct abnormalities of the urinary system of ruminants. Surgery of the urinary system in ruminants most frequently is required to alleviate urethral obstruction or correct urinary bladder rupture. Several options for surgical management of those conditions are presented, but the prognosis for long-term survival or a return to reproductive function is poor if a urethrostomy is performed. Nephrectomy, translocation of ectopic ureters, removal of urachal remnants, and urethral extension to treat urovagina are performed less often in ruminants because animals requiring these procedures often are culled because of economic considerations or decreased productivity. Consequently, much of what has been described for ruminants is based on a limited number of cases or extrapolated from what has been learned from other species.