Ureteral & Kidney Conditions

Ureteral Stricture Disease

Ureteral Stricture Disease

Narrowing of the ureter between the kidney and bladder: causes, testing, and robotic repair that can end the need for stents.

Written and reviewed by Shervin Badkhshan, MD · Last reviewed

November 2026

Part of:

Ureter and kidney drainage

Hospital, 1 night

Stent: several weeks

Fellowship-Trained Reconstructive Urology

AT A GLANCE

From symptoms to treatment

1. SYMPTOMS

• Flank pain or infections • Long-term stent or drain

2. TESTING

• CT and renogram • Dye studies to map the narrowing

Test result guides →

3. TREATMENT

• Stents or drains • Robotic reconstruction • Cheek-graft ureteroplasty

Surgical options →

A ureteral stricture is a narrowing of the ureter, the tube between the kidney and bladder. Urine backs up toward the kidney, and over time the kidney can lose function. It affects both men and women.

Diagram of the kidney, ureter, and bladder showing where UPJ obstruction and ureteral strictures occur

Common causes

  • Kidney stones and stone procedures

  • Prior pelvic or abdominal surgery, including hysterectomy and colon surgery

  • Radiation

  • Injury, infection, or rarely a tumor

What you might notice

Flank pain, infections, or no symptoms. Many people come to me with a stent or a kidney drain (nephrostomy) that has to be changed every few months.

How I evaluate it

CT, a renogram to measure kidney function and drainage, and X-ray dye studies from above and below to map the length and location of the narrowing.

Treatment

Long-term stents or drains are an option, but they need regular changes and can cause discomfort. Robotic reconstruction is the lasting fix: reconnecting the ureter, reimplanting it into the bladder, or widening it with a graft from inside the cheek (buccal ureteroplasty), depending on where the stricture is and how long.

Related

Robotic ureteral reconstruction · Robotic ureteroplasty · Ureteral reimplantation

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Your results and questions

Your actual test results, visit notes, and messages with your care team are in your patient portal, the same one you use to book visits. Send questions through the portal or call the office at (516) 535-1900. For anything urgent, call the office or go to the nearest emergency room.