Supine percutaneous nephrolithotomy in a patient with a history of previous spinal surgeries

Abstract

Patients with abnormal body habitus because of spinal deformities and patients having undergone previous spinal surgeries present a challenge during surgical, anesthesiologic, and technical procedures. In these patients, management of urolithiasis may be difficult because of anatomic variations and respiratory dysfunction, stone size, spinal deformities, or risk of spinal injuries. Percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) as monotherapy has advantages in removing large stones and achieving excellent results with minimal morbidity. PCNL in supine position has several advantages attached to it, which include improvement in anesthetic management, decreased intrarenal pressures, decreased radiation exposure and improved ergonomics of fluoroscopy, improvements in patient positioning, and shorter operative time. We report a case of supine PCNL in a patient who was operated previously on the cervical and lumbar spine.