Last update:
09-Jul-2004

Urinary tract trauma is uncommon and is usually associated with other more life threatening injuries in patients with serious trauma. The management of upper urinary tract injuries, irrespective of the mechanism of infliction, has become more and more conservative. A better staging of renal and ureteral trauma can be obtained by means of computerized tomography and intravenous urography, and patients can be more accurately selected for the appropriate management. Some major blunt injuries and the most open renal injuries require surgery. Urinary bladder trauma may be managed either conservatively or surgically. The ruptured urethra, depending on the site and the grade of the injury, is managed conservatively or endoscopically and by surgery, and the treatment may be immediate or delayed. In the long term, impotence is a frequent problem after urethral rupture.

Key words: Bladder trauma, Renal trauma, Ureteric trauma, Urethral trauma.