Before reading this section, please refer to General instructions after surgery in this section of the website.

Your child has just undergone a pyeloplasty, which entails removing a diseased segment of the upper ureter as it exits the kidney and reconstructing the junction of the renal pelvis (where the urine collects before leaving the kidney) and the remaining ureter. Most children who undergo pyeloplasty will be hospitalized for one to two days.

Most patients who undergo pyeloplasty receive a local anesthetic that includes rib "blocks" which provide good pain relief until the patient begins taking medication by mouth. A regional anesthetic (i.e. epidural anesthesia) is sometimes used as well. In general, pyeloplasty can be accomplished through a very small incision, so pain control is usually not a significant issue.

Most patients who undergo pyeloplasty have an internal stent placed at the time of surgery that bridges the repair. This device is a small, hollow tube, thus permitting urine to drain freely past the site of surgery which will be temporarily swollen. This device is removed in the operating room about four week after the pyeloplasty, requiring a brief anesthetic. Stent removal is accomplished through the urethra with a small fiber optic scope, so there is minimal discomfort associated with stent removal and the patient is free to go home shortly after the procedure. Usually, patients find their bladder is more comfortable once the stent is removed. Not long after stent removal, an ultrasound is performed to check the drainage of the repaired kidney. It is not uncommon to have some transient flank discomfort after the stent is removed. Please let us know if it seems unusually severe or persistent.

Most patients who undergo pyeloplasty will have an external drain placed at the time of surgery in the space around the kidney. This is placed to prevent any accumulation of urine or lymph fluid around the kidney while the repair is healing. This drain is typically removed prior to discharge from the hospital or shortly thereafter in the office.

Patients who have had a pyeloplasty need to take it easy for six weeks after surgery. Please refer to the Activity instructions in the General post-operative instructions section of the website for more information.