Forgotten long-term indwelling double J stent

A poor,uneducated patient from a rural background presented to us with burning micturition and colicky pain in the loin. He had undergone surgery for pelvi-ureteric junction (PUJ) obstruction on the right side four years earlier. Following surgery,the patient was irregular in his follow-up and,as such,he did not get the double J (DJ) stent,which was placed during surgery, removed. Ultrasonography performed during the present admission revealed mild hydronephrosis of the right kidney with a tiny calculus in the urinary bladder. Intravenous urography revealed mild hydronephrosis with the DJ stent in situ in the right kidney. After an unsuccessful attempt with cystoscopy, the stent was removed successfully by suprapubic cystostomy. The post-operative course was uneventful and the patient was discharged in seven days.