Background: We present a case involving a pregnant woman who needed transurethral lithotripsy for ureteral stent removal because of the stent encrustation.
Clinical case: A 34-year-old woman was diagnosed with calculous pyelonephritis, and a double-loop ureteral stent was placed in her right ureter, after which the pyelonephritis resolved. One week after her delivery, we attempted to remove the ureteral stent; however, the encrustation of the proximal and distal coils made it impossible. We then crushed the encrustation by transurethral lithotripsy and removed the ureteral stent successfully. The encrustation component was calcium phosphate, and the urinary pH during pregnancy and after delivery was 7.5.
Conclusion: Even in pregnant patients, patients placed ureteral stents for obstructive pyelonephritis with high urine pH might need to be replaced in the short term due to concerns regarding phosphate encrustation.
Keywords: Case report; Encrustation; Lithotripsy; Pregnant; Transurethral lithotripsy; Ureteral stent.