Percutaneous nephrolithotomy for staghorn calculi: Troubleshooting and managing complications

摘要

Staghorn calculi comprise a unique subset of complex kidney stone disease. Percutaneousnephrolithotomy (PCNL) is the gold standard treatment for staghorn stones. Despitecontinuous refinements to the technique and instrumentation of PCNL, these stones remaina troublesome challenge for endourologists and are associated with a higher rate of perioperativecomplications than that for non-staghorn stones. Common and notable intraoperativecomplications include bleeding, renal collecting system injury, injury of visceral organs, pulmonarycomplications, thromboembolic complications, extrarenal stone migration, andmisplacement of the nephrostomy tube. Postoperative complications include infection and urosepsis,bleeding, persistent nephrocutaneous urine leakage, infundibular stenosis, and death.In this review, we report recommendations regarding troubleshooting measures that can beused to identify and characterize these complications. Additionally, we include informationregarding management strategies for complications associated with PCNL for staghorn calculi.