Toward Supportive Decision-Making for Ureteral Stent Removal: Development of a Morphology-Based X-Ray Analysis

This study developed a morphology-based X-ray analysis algorithm to support decision-making for ureteral stent removal timing. Two computational approaches were compared in 173 patients. The first method employed vector-based analysis using the FitLine function to extract unit vectors from each stent segment and calculate inter-vector angles, but showed no significant changes (p=0.844). The second method applied slope-based analysis, computing gradients between coordinate points to evaluate global ureter straightening over time, and identified statistically significant changes (p<0.05). Aview software (v1.1.44.17-win, Coreline Soft, Seoul, Republic of Korea) was used for ROI designation. This study presented an objective and reproducible imaging analysis method in the absence of standardized criteria for stent removal.