Bladder fistulas almost always require surgery; nonsurgical therapy is usually not effective. Sometimes a fistula is a complication of another condition, such as inflammation or cancer. When that is the case, the fistula is usually repaired in conjunction with other surgeries to treat the original condition. For other patients, it is possible for the fistula to be cured with laparoscopic surgery for the fistula alone. In either case, the surgery uses the healthy tissue surrounding the fistula to close it, so surgical success is directly related to the condition of this tissue. In the occasional case of a simple fistula (one that is not associated with cancer or radiation therapy), bladder drainage for a minimum of four weeks may allow the fistula to heal without surgery.
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