Negotiating ureteral stenoses and kinks with a hydrophilic wire.

Negotiating a tortuous or obstructed ureter with a wire can be time-consuming and sometimes tiring. The principle of using a slippery floppy wire and then replacing it with a stiff wire through a 5-french open-ended ureteral catheter yields a high success rate. The ureteral catheter can be used for a radiocontrast study and allows access for a 0.035 'coaxial wire', which can be used as a guide wire for a single or double J stent.