Urinary System Stone Disease in Infants: A Single Center Experience

Objective: The incidence of urinary system stone disease in childhood has been gradually increasing in recent years. We aimed to evaluate the etiologic, clinical and prognostic characteristics of infants who were diagnosed with urinary system stone disease within the last three years. Methods: Fifty-one children under one year of age with urinary system stone disease were included in the study. The medical records of the patients were analyzed retrospectively. The demographic characteristics, clinical and laboratory results were recorded. Results: Twenty-seven of 51 patients (52.9%) were male. The mean age of the patients at the time of diagnosis was 5.5 +/- 2.8 months. The mean follow-up period was 4.9 +/- 4.3 months. The dimensions of stone size were <= 3 mm in 19 (37.3%), >3-5 mm in 17 (33.3%), and >5 mm in 15 (29.4%) patients. Nineteen patients (37.3%) had a urinary metabolic disturbance. The most common metabolic cause was hypercalciuria. The 41.2% of the patients had a family history of urinary system stone disease, 19.6% of patients had parental consanguinity and 13.7% of patients had prematurity. Stone size decreased in 54.9% of the patients, complete improvement was seen in 23.5% of the patients, while stone size increased in 11.8% of the patients. Complete improvement and decrease in stone size were found to be higher in patients with stone size <= 3 mm which was not statistically significant. Conclusion: In infants, urinary system stone disease differs from other periods in childhood. In this age group, family history and underlying metabolic causes are prominent. Therefore, investigation of the metabolic causes in children with urinary system stone disease is important to determine the etiology and appropriate treatment.