Pediatric urinary stone disease: experience from a Turkish tertiary referral center

Purpose: The incidence of pediatric nephrolithiasis/urolithiasis (NL/UL) has increased in the last few decades due to dietary habits and a sedentary lifestyle. This study aimed to determine the etiological factors and six months of follow-up results of patients with NL/UL in pediatric nephrology and urology clinics in our center. Materials and Methods: Children with NL/UL between December 2018 and December 2020 were enrolled in this study. The medical records were reviewed to collect data about admission complaints, consanguinity, metabolic risk factors for NL/UL, medical treatments, surgical interventions, and presence of stones after 6 months of follow-up. Results: A total of 93 patients (46 male and 47 female) were included in the study. Consanguinity and a positive family history for stones was present in 46.2% and 78.5% of patients, respectively. The urinary metabolic risk factors were hyperuricosuria (11/83, 13.3%), hypercalciuria (12/93, 12.9%), hyperoxaluria (6/51, 11.8%), cystinuria (7/90, 7.8%), and hypocitraturia (2/41, 4.9%). Twenty patients (29.9%) with NL/UL and without cystinuria received potassium citrate therapy. After 6 months of follow-up (n = 27) of these patients, stone progression was not observed in any of the patients who received potassium citrate treatment (n=11) or underwent surgical intervention (n=10). Conclusions: Most patients had a family history of stones. Hyperuricosuria was the most common urinary risk factor for NL/UL. Potassium citrate therapy might be useful to prevent stone progression in patients with NL/UL.