Of 250 cases of percutaneous nephrolithotomy perforation of the left colon has been observed in 2 men with mobile kidneys. The clinical signs were rectal hemorrhage with shock in 1 case and passage of gas through the nephrostomy tract in the other case. The perforation was not suspected during the nephrolithotomy. Both patients were treated surgically. In view of the risk of colonic perforation during percutaneous nephrolithotomy, great care should be taken during puncture. This risk is increased in cases with an excessively lateral tract or when the anatomical relationships are modified in subjects with mobile kidneys. Surgical repair is required when the perforation is intraperitoneal or when there is a risk of complications. Simple surveillance is only justified when the perforation is extraperitoneal and when there is no risk of complications.

Percutaneous extraction of renal stones is associated with a risk of infection, which sometimes can be severe as a result of the intraoperative introduction of a ureteral catheter, the nephroscopy itself and the fact that a nephrostomy tube sometimes is left in place. It generally is accepted that patients with a preoperative urinary tract infection should be covered during the operation by an appropriate antibiotic. However, the need for routine prophylactic antibiotic treatment in patients with sterile urine preoperatively still is a subject of debate. We report the bacteriological results of 126 cases of percutaneous extraction of renal stones. Of the patients 107 had sterile urine preoperatively and deliberately did not receive prophylactic antibiotics so that the mechanisms of urinary tract infection after percutaneous nephrolithotomy could be studied. Of these patients 37 (35 per cent) suffered a postoperative urinary tract infection, usually owing to Escherichia coli, streptococcus or staphylococcus. The responsible organism was isolated in the bladder urine only in 22 cases, in the nephrostomy tube in 2 and in both sites in 13. Eleven patients (10 per cent) presented with a fever of 38.5C or more. All of the infected patients received appropriate antibiotic therapy and there were only 2 bacteriological failures on long-term followup (5 per cent). A total of 19 patients had a urinary tract infection preoperatively. All 19 patients received appropriate antibiotic therapy starting at least 24 hours preoperatively and continuing for a minimum of 3 weeks. Five patients (26 per cent) presented with a fewer but there were no serious septic complications. All of the patients were discharged from the hospital with sterile urine and there was only 1 long-term bacteriological failure (5 per cent). Both patients with Pseudomonas infection were cured. The risk of clinical infection following percutaneous nephrolithotomy is low despite the fact that 35 per cent of the patients have bacteriuria postoperatively, provided a careful bacteriological examination is performed preoperatively and the patients with urinary tract infection are treated appropriately. These results are in favor of short-term prophylactic antibiotics adapted to the bacterial ecology.

Transurethral resection of the prostate is associated with a major risk of postoperative infection. To evaluate the clinical and bacteriological efficacy of antibiotic prophylaxis with a single dose of netilmicin sulfate, we conducted a randomized study in 100 patients with sterile preoperative urine undergoing transurethral resection of the prostate. Of these patients 95 were evaluated: 47 were randomized to the control group and received an intramuscular injection of 1.5 ml. of a 0.9 per cent solution of sodium chloride 1 hour preoperatively and 48 were given an intramuscular injection of 150 mg. netilmicin sulfate in a volume of 1.5 ml. 1 hour preoperatively. Of the patients 16 in the control group (34 per cent) and only 1 in the treated group (2 per cent) had bacteriuria (greater than 10(5) bacteria per ml.) (p less than 0.001). This difference also was significant 2 and 5 days postoperatively (p less than 0.05 and p less than 0.001, respectively). One patient in the control group had bacteremia compared to none in the treated group. Clinical signs of infection were less common in the treated group. Sensitivity studies revealed that all of the organisms tested were sensitive to netilmicin sulfate. High concentrations of netilmicin sulfate were found in the urine collected at operation (162 +/- 112 micrograms per ml. urine).

A total of 433 extracorporeal lithotripsy procedures was performed for renal, ureteral and bladder stones by means of a system of ultrasonographic detection and piezoelectric destruction in 386 patients. The stones were detected easily in 87 per cent of the patients, difficult to detect in 10 per cent and impossible to detect in 3 per cent. Mean duration of treatment was 35 minutes. Mean number of piezoelectric waves was 2,700 at 1.25 per second. With a frequency of 1.25 to 5 per second, extracorporeal lithotripsy was performed without any local, regional or general anesthesia, and without premedication in 210 patients. Of the 217 patients with a renal stone reviewed at 3 months 161 (74 per cent) had successful results and 56 (26 per cent) failed therapy. Thirty patients (14 per cent) underwent 2 or 3 sessions. The morbidity was low: 2 per cent of the patients suffered ureteral obstruction, 1.5 per cent had subcapsular hematoma and 4 per cent had fever. No significant modifications of laboratory tests were necessary and no patient suffered renal failure. Of the stones 31 in the lumbar ureter, 15 in the pelvic ureter and 8 in the bladder were treated, with success rates of 87, 46 and 50 per cent, respectively. A total of 103 patients was treated on an outpatient basis. This outpatient treatment, together with the low cost and minimal maintenance of the apparatus, and the absence of anesthesia constitute a new progress in the treatment of renal stones.

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