Anterior urethral valves without diverticulae: a report of two cases and a review of the literature.

Two unusual cases of anterior urethral valves (AUV) without diverticulae are presented. The first case is a male child born with prenatal diagnosis of bilateral hydronephrosis. On cystoscopy, iris-like diaphragm valves were encountered about 3 mm distal to the skeletal sphincter. In the second case, an 18-month-old male child was investigated for recurrent febrile urinary tract infections and obstructed urinary symptoms. Cystoscopy confirmed the presence of slit-like valves 5 mm distal to the skeletal sphincter. Fulguration of the AUVs was performed in both cases. It may be worthwhile to review all cases of anterior urethral obstruction collectively and re-categorize them appropriately to include the unusual AUVs without diverticulum in that classification.