Objective To review the morbidity and complications of ureteric stent insertion and to evaluate speci®cally the effect of an indwelling ureteric stent on the changes in hydronephrosis after stenting. Patients and methods In a prospective study, 110 renal units with a stent in place were evaluated in 90 patients. Of the 110 stents, 52 were left in place for 3 months, 23 for 6, 11 for 9, 19 for 12 and ®ve (forgotten stents) for 13±30 months. The patients were followed using plain abdominal X-ray at 1 and 30 days after stenting. They were further followed using ultrasonography and plain ®lms every 3 months until the scheduled date for stent removal or the appearance of complications. Results Thirty-four patients had fever and bacteriuria after stent insertion. Of the 110 stents, 11 (10%) fragmented and nine (8%) migrated. Seventeen patients complained of¯ank pain on voiding. In 21 renal units (19%) there was no change in the severity of hydronephrosis, whereas in six (5.5%) hydronephrosis developed or worsened after stenting. Conclusion Although ureteric stenting is undoubtedly an important procedure to relieve ureteric obstruction, the indications for stent insertion should be considered carefully in every patient. The close follow-up of stented patients is valuable for the early detection of morbidity or complications and in such cases the stent should be removed or exchanged as soon as possible.

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Objective To present and describe the validity and generic health status, as measured by the Short Form (SF-36) and EuroQol instruments. Reliability was reliability of the International Continence SocietyBenign Prostatic Hyperplasia study quality-of-life assessed by measures of internal consistency and a test-retest analysis. (ICSQoL) instrument, a new set of questions to assess the impact of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS)Results The ICSQoL items were easily understood by patients, were completed with low levels of missing on quality of life (QoL) in middle-aged and elderly men. Patients and methods The study comprised 1271 condata, and address some (but not all) concerns about the impact of LUTS on QoL. The ICSQoL items have secutive men over the age of 45 years, attending urology departments in 12 countries, with LUTS and good construct validity, showing expected diÂerences between community and clinic samples, and expected possible benign prostatic obstruction who were recruited to the ICS-'BPH' study (the clinic group); relationships with each other and individual LUTS. Items had good test-retest reliability, but their internal 423 ambulant men were recruited from a general practice in the UK to provide a community group.consistency was poor, confirming that ICSQoL questions should not be combined into a score. General Each individual completed the ICS-'BPH' study questionnaire which includes six items addressing general ICSQoL items were closely related with most domains of the SF-36 and the EuroQol. and specific aspects of QoL (the ICSQoL). Content and construct validity were assessed by interviews with Conclusion ICSQoL items may be used individually or as a group in research studies or in clinical practice. patients and by testing hypotheses within the study groups, e.g. the relationships with age, individual Keywords Quality of life, lower urinary tract symptoms, questionnaire, benign prostatic hyperplasia LUTS (as measured on the ICSmale questionnaire) and be diagnosed with pressure-flow studies in conjunction

SUMMARY One hundred and fifty-five premature infants weighing 600-2000 g were followed up during for the presence of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and for the existence of myopia. 50% of the premature infants who had ROP were myopic, while only 16% myopic premature infants were found among those who did not have ROP. There was a positive correlation between the degree of myopia and the severity of cicatricial ROP. No difference existed in the frequency and degree of myopia between premature infants in which ROP cicatrised spontaneously and in those where it cicatrised after cryopexy.Myopia is a frequent finding in premature babies." Comparative studies2 showed that premature infants tend to develop myopia and that there is a close relationship between myopia and retrolental fibroplasia. However, the relationship has not been clearly established.In the present study we investigated the prevalence of myopia in premature infants and its relation to the cicatricial stages of ROP in untreated eyes and in eyes treated by cryopexy. Material and methodsOne hundred and fifty-five premature babies weighing from 600 to 2000 g, born in 1974-80, were examined for the presence of ROP and for the existence of myopia at the age of 2 weeks; they were followed-up for 2-8 years, the mean follow-up time being 3 years. The family history was taken, and the premature babies with one or both parents myopic above -6-0 dioptres were excluded from the study. The examination included indirect ophthalmoscopy and retinoscopy, and in 10 out of 26 eyes in which the myopia exceeded -3-0 dioptres a measurement of the axial length of the globe was performed by Amode ultrasound. Cycloplegia for retinoscopy was achieved by instilling cyclopentolate 0-5%

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