Impact of Short-Stay Urethroplasty on Health-Related Quality of Life and Patient's Perception of Timing of Discharge

Objective. To evaluate health-related quality of life in patients after a short-stay or outpatient urethroplasty. Methods. Over a 2-year period a validated health-related quality-of-life questionnaire, EuroQol (EQ-5D), was administered to all patients after urethroplasty. Postoperatively patients were offered to be sent home immediately or to stay overnight. Within 24 hours after discharge they were assessed for mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain or discomfort, and anxiety and depression. An additional question assessing timing of discharge was added to the survey. Clinical and operative characteristics were examined. Results. Forty-eight patients after anterior urethroplasty completed the survey. Mean age and mean stricture length were 51.6 years (21-78) and 60 mm (5-200 mm), respectively. Most etiologies were idiopathic (50% n = 24), trauma (19%, n = 9), and iatrogenic (19%, n = 9). Forty-one patients (85%) stayed overnight, while 7 patients (15%) chose to be discharged the same day. Overall, ninety-six percent were discharged within 23 hours of surgery. In the short-stay and the outpatient cohorts, 90% and 86%, respectively, felt they were discharged on time. No patient reported a severe problem with postoperative pain or mobility. Conclusions. The majority of patients discharged soon after their procedure felt that discharge timing was appropriate and their health-related quality of life was only minimally affected.