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Kidney Disorders
The kidneys are two small fist-sized organs located behind the abdomen on each side of the spine. By producing urine, kidneys remove toxic by-products and excess fluids from the body to help maintain a critical balance of salt, potassium and acid.
Diseases of the kidney are found more often in racial and ethnic minority populations in the United States than in the Caucasian population. African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, and Pacific Islander Americans are three times more likely to suffer from kidney failure than Americans of European descent.
Blockage of the Ureter
One of the most common conditions affecting the kidneys is blockage of the ureter - the tubes that transport urine from the kidneys to the bladder. This condition is found in adults, but more commonly in children.
Normally, a single ureter drains a single kidney but sometimes there may be two ureters draining one kidney. One ureter drains the upper part of the kidney and the second ureter drains the lower part. As long as they both enter the bladder normally, this "duplicated collecting system" is not a problem.
In rare cases, a child may be born with an ectopic (abnormally positioned) ureter. This is a ureter that fails to connect properly to the bladder and drains somewhere outside the bladder. In girls, the ectopic ureter usually drains into the urethra or even the vagina. In boys, it usually drains into the urethra near the prostate or into the genital duct system. The urethra is a canal that carries the urine from the bladder and in males also serves as a passageway for semen.
The most common cause of blockage in the urinary tract in children is a congenital obstruction at the point where the ureter joins the renal pelvis — the ureteropelvic junction (UPJ) - the area at the center of the kidney where urine collects and is funneled into the ureter. This problem occurs in roughly one in 1,500 children.1 These obstructions develop prenatally as the kidney is forming. Today, most cases are diagnosed on prenatal ultrasound screening. In UPJ obstruction, the kidney produces urine at a rate that exceeds the amount of urine able to drain out of the renal pelvis into the ureter. This causes an accumulation of urine in the kidney. This accumulation, also called hydronephrosis. It is visible on ultrasound and often allows the doctor to predict the presence of UPJ obstruction before the baby is born.
da Vinci ® Surgery for Kidney Conditions (Pyeloplasty)
If your doctor recommends surgery for a kidney condition, you may be a candidate for a new, minimally invasive approach - da Vinci Surgery. da Vinci Surgery uses state-of-the-art technology to help your doctor perform a more precise operation compared to traditional surgery. It offers several potential benefits over traditional open and laparoscopic kidney surgery, including:
- Shorter operation2,3
- Less blood loss & transfusions2
- Avoids cystoscopy (view of bladder using tube inserted through urethra)2
- Fewer complications3
- Shorter hospital stay2,3
- Faster recovery2
- Better clinical outcomes2
da Vinci Pyeloplasty for kidney conditions incorporates the best techniques of open surgery and applies them to a robotic-assisted, minimally invasive approach.
The precision and dexterity of the da Vinci Surgical System allows for a minimally invasive approach to treating kidney disorders and kidney cancer.
As with any surgery, these benefits cannot be guaranteed since surgery is specific to each patient and procedure.
If you are a candidate for kidney surgery, talk to a urologist who performs da Vinci kidney procedures. To find a da Vinci urologic surgeon, use our surgeon locator.
While clinical studies support the effectiveness of the da Vinci® System when used in minimally invasive surgery, individual results may vary. Surgery with the da Vinci Surgical System may not be appropriate for every individual. Always ask your doctor about all treatment options, as well as their risks and benefits.
- "Ectopic Kidneys", National Urological Association Foundation, www.urologyhealth.org, URL: http://urologyhealth.org/adult/index.cfm?cat=02&topic=122
- "Ectopic Ureter", American Urological Association Foundation, www.urologyhealth.org , URL: http://www.urologyhealth.org/pediatric/index.cfm?cat=01&topic=71
- Hemal AK, Mukherjee S, Singh K; Laparoscopic pyeloplasty verus robotic pyeloplasty ureteropelvic junction obstruction: a series of 60 cases performed by a single surgeon.
- Olsen LH, Jorgensen TM; Computer Assisted Pyeloplasty in Children: The Retroperitoneal Approach; The Journal of Urology, Vol. 171, 2629-2631, June 2004.