Our 23-year experience in urethrocutaneous fistulas developing after hypospadias surgery

OBJECTIVES To determine the role of the fistula characteristics on the outcomes of repair in urethrocutancous fistulas that develop after hypospadias surgery. METHODS A total of 160 patients who had undergone urethrocutancous fistula repair after hypospadias surgery were enrolled in this study. The prognostic significance of the site, size, and number of fistulas, number of the previous operations, and the techniques applied were analyzed by the appropriate statistical methods as the parameters of the study. RESULTS The fistulas were localized at the distal, mid, or proximal penile region in 69 (43.2%), 60 (37.5%), and 31 (19.2%) patients, respectively. No statistically significant relation was found between the fistula site and the success rate (P > 0.05). The fistula size (2 mm or less versus greater than 2 mm) and the number of fistula repairs (single versus two or more) also did not affect the outcome (P > 0.05, Pearson chi-square and Fisher's exact tests). CONCLUSIONS The site, size, and number of the fistula repair seemed to have no impact on the success rate. Well-known aspects of the modern hypospadias surgery (eg, delicate tissue handling, instruments, point coagulation, and vascularity of the tissues) probably play a role in the outcome.