OPTILUME
Urethral stenosis refers to the formation of stenosis in the urinary tract structure called urethra for various reasons. Stenosis may result from damage to the urethra due to edema, previous operations, trauma or infection. Patients with urethral stenosis, which manifests itself with difficulty in urinating, may also experience pain.
Drug-Coated Balloon Dilatation, a new method in the treatment of urethral stricture, is a non-surgical, minimally invasive treatment method. It can be used safely in patients over 18 years of age with anterior urethral stenosis up to 3 cm in length.
With the balloon dilation principle in the treatment, the stenosis is opened and micro cracks are created in the tissue. The drug coated on the balloon is separated from the balloon by the 10atm pressure effect of the balloon and adheres to the urethra epithelium. Since the drug limits “excessive cell division and fibrotic tissue formation” that will cause the stenosis to recur, new stenosis formation is prevented.
In the study of Elliott et al., published in 2022, drug-coated balloon dilatation was compared with standard balloon dilatation. According to the 6-month results, the results in widening of the anatomical stenosis were seen in favor of the drug-coated balloon with a ratio of 74.6% to 26.8%. In the same study, 83.2% of the patients who received a drug-coated balloon did not need a reintervention within 1 year, while this figure was 21.7% in standard balloon dilatation.
According to the study published by Virasoro et al. in 2022, 77% of the patients did not need a re-intervention or procedure, according to the results of the drug-coated balloon used in 53 patients with stenosis shorter than 2 cm and who had previously undergone the procedure 1 to 4 times, at the end of 3 years. The Qmax (Maximum urine flow rate) of the patients increased by 176% and the IPSS (Prostate Symptom Score) decreased by 65%.
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