Congenital anterior urethrocutaneous fistula: A systematic review

Abstract

Congenital anterior urethrocutaneous fistula (CAUF) is a rare anomaly characterized by fistulization of penile urethra to skin. It's usually seen as an isolated deformity or may accompany genitourinary or anorectal malformations. We aim to define the common properties of patients mentioned in literatures by systematic review. A comprehensive search of PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library was performed including cross-referencing independently by two assessors. Selections were restricted to human studies in English. Based on the systematic review, 63 patients in 34 articles were included in the study. Most common fistula site was subcoronal in 29 (46.0%) patients. Chordee was in 8 (14.5%) and associated genitourinary anomaly was detected in 19 (30.2%) of patients. Fistula recurrence ratio was 6/59 (11.3%) using different surgical techniques and 3/6 was closed spontaneously. CAUF is frequently located in subcoronal level and usually an intact urethra distal to it. Success rates are high with the principles of hypospadias surgery.