Objective: The Snodgrass urethroplasty, described in 1994 for the treatment of distal hypospadias, has very rapidly become a popular technique. However, incision of the urethral plate could be associated with a risk of stenosis of the neourethra. We present our preliminary results with this technique.
Materials and methods: Fifty two patients (47 distal forms and 5 midshaft forms) were operated according to this technique. Twenty five of these patients were reviewed with a follow-up of 18 months, and uroflowmetry was performed in 20 of them. Only the records of the other 27 patients were reviewed.
Results: The meatus is apical and oval and the glans is conical. There is no residual chordee. Early in our experience, we observed 13% of fistulas and 4% of stenoses. Four patients presented uroflowmetry results below the curve of the 5th percentile, but were completely asymptomatic.
Conclusions: The results of this technique are excellent. With experience, our complication rate has been markedly decreased by performing deeper incision of the urethral plate. The risk of stenosis is theoretical rather than practical.