Innovative Surgical Care for Children with Rare Urological Disorders

Hackensack Meridian Children’s Health pediatric urologists care for children with rare, complex conditions — making the network a destination for children from across the nation and world who need advanced surgical treatment.

Richard N. Schlussel, M.D., co-director of Pediatric Urology at Hackensack Meridian Health, recently performed life-changing procedures for two teenagers with complex urological disorders.

The first case was performed on a teenage girl with spina bifida. Her condition caused nerve dysfunction that led to bowel problems — impacting her quality of life and affecting her ability to participate in sports and school. Dr. Schlussel performed the first-ever robotic Malone procedure at Hackensack University Medical Center, creating a surgical channel from the patient’s belly button to her colon using the appendix. The surgical channel includes a one-way valve to prevent leakage and enables the patient to easily administer enemas to treat bowel dysfunction. Use of the robotic surgical system allowed for not only a good technical result, but also excellent cosmesis, less pain and a quicker return to her activities, including training for the Special Olympics.

The second case was performing on a teenage boy with hypospadias — a condition that occurs when the urethra is located on the underside of the penis. After more than 12 surgeries performed at other institutions, Dr. Schlussel performed a procedure to reconstruct the patient’s urethra using buccal mucosa graft from inside the patient’s mouth, enabling the patient to urinate normally.

“We are providing life-enhancing surgical care for young patients with complex urological conditions using innovative surgical techniques,” said Dr. Schlussel.

Learn more about our advancements in pediatric urology.