Patent urachus repair - series

Indications

Indications

Surgery is recommended for a patent urachus that does not close after birth. There is some variablity in the degree of the defect. Sometimes, only the umbilical end of the urachus fails to close, generating a urachal sinus, which does not connect with the bladder, but simply eneters the skin for a short distance. These can usually be excised locally. If the entire urachus is patent all the way to the bladder, the urachus must be excised and the bladder closed.

Update Date: 9/3/2010

Updated by: David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine; and Scott Miller, MD, Urologist in private practice in Atlanta, Georgia. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

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