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Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate an EW-7197eluting nanofiber-covered stent (NFCS) for granulation tissue formation after stent placement in a canine urethral model. Materials: All experiments were approved by the committee of animal research. A total of 12 NFCSs were placed in the proximal and distal urethras of six dogs. Dogs were divided into two groups with 3 dogs each. The control stent (CS) group received NFCSs and the drug stent (DS) group received EW-7197 (1000 μg)-eluting NFCSs. All dogs were sacrificed 8 weeks after stent placement. Histologic findings of the stented urethra were compared using the Mann-Whitney U test. Results: Stent placement was technically successful in all dogs without procedure-related complications. On urethrographic analysis, the mean luminal diameter was significantly larger in the DS group than in the CS group at 4 and 8 weeks after stent placement (all p 0.05). The in vitro release study demonstrated that approximately 80% of the drug was eluted from the stents within 1 day after which the elution rate slowed and reached a plateau after 10 days. Conclusions:The EW-7197-eluting NFCS is effective and safe for suppressing granulation tissue formation after stent placement in a canine urethral model. Abstract No. 572Renal access for repeat percutaneous nephrolithotomy in patients with recurrent kidney stones: feasibility, safety and endourologic procedure outcomes

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Purpose: To study and provide an update on utilization of vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures among Medicare beneficiaries and analyze the changing trends in total volumes and payments by physician specialty for a recent eight-year period.

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