Appendicovesicostomy: The Mitrofanoff procedure - A 15-year perspective

Purpose: Appendicovesicostomy was introduced in the United States in 1982 a t our hospital. It has become the most popular alternate continence channel for catheterization. We reviewed the experience of 1 surgeon with appendic ovesicostomy during a 15-year period. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the operative reports an d clinical records of 50 consecutive patients in whom appendicovesicostomy was performed by 1 surgeon between 1982 and 1998. The underlying diagnosis was myelomeningocele in 31 cases, bladder exstrophy in 6, the prune-belly s yndrome in 2, posterior urethral valves in 2 and other disorders in 10. Mea n patient age at surgery was 13.1 years (range 4 months to 25 years) and me an followup was 4.3 years (range 3 months to 16.3 years). Results: Of the 50 patients 96% continue to catheterize the appendicovesico stomy. Stomal stenosis developed in 5 cases (10%) and other complications i ncluded stricture and appendiceal perforation in 2 each. Eight patients (16 %) required appendicovesicostomy revision at a median of 7.3 months (range 1 month to 5.8 years) after the initial procedure. Median time to revision for stomal stenosis was 13 months (range 1 month to 5.8 years). Appendicove sicostomy continence was achieved in 49 patients (98%). Conclusions: Our series demonstrates the successful long-term outcome and d urability of appendicovesicostomy in children. Careful adherence to techniq ue at initial surgery helps ensure a high long-term success rate.