Recently innovated ureteral access sheath (UAS) covers the application of flexible navigable UAS that enables penetration into the collecting system & adds suction/evacuation to enhance the effectiveness of fragment clearance. Moreover, the study focused on reporting related to the experience of leveraging navigable suction-assisted UAS (NS-UAS) to manage kidney stones through a large cohort.
This study conducted a retrospective analysis of patients who underwent flexible ureteroscopy for kidney stones by employing navigable NS-UAS between 2022 & 2025 in a tertiary center. Whereas perioperative result data about efficacy and safety were revealed. Alongside, univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted for risk factors connected with the stone-free rate.
The respective study results have covered 2284 patients with a mean (SD) age of 48 (12.5) years. While half of the patients (49.7%) underwent early ureteric stent placement, the mean (SD) stone burden was 13.1 (3.7) mm. Moreover, the overall concern incidence was 9.6% with only 1.28% case of Clavien-Dindo grade III or IV complications, along with on multivariate analysis, older age (OR = 0.97 [0.96-0.98]), higher stone burden (OR = 0.45 [0.33-0.62]), and intraoperative stent placement (OR = 0.71 [0.54-0.95]) were recorded that are associated with lower SFR, while using basketing (OR = 2.17 [1.33-3.53]) was connected with higher SFR.
According to Towards Healthcare, the ureteral access sheath market is projected to experience significant growth, with estimates suggesting the market size will increase from USD 1.1 billion in 2026 to approximately USD 2.1 billion by 2035, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.5% from 2026 to 2035. Increasing cases of kidney stones, growth in minimally invasive urological procedures, & ongoing technological breakthroughs in disposable sheaths and hydrophilic coatings are propelling the global market expansion. The trend has been promoting the development of the latest hydrophilic coatings, which ease insertion, lower friction, & reduce the risk of ureteral injury during complex stone extraction.
According to Towards Healthcare, the ureteral access sheath market will implement Flexible and Navigable Suction Ureteral Access Sheaths (FANSs) that consistently discard stone fragments. Further gives major improvements in visibility, reduction in procedure time, & elimination of the need for repeated basketing.
Upcoming UAS designs will use real-time, automated pressure-measuring technology for intelligent balancing of inflow and outflow to mitigate high renal pelvic pressures, preventing the risk of infectious issues, such as urosepsis.
