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Changes in stone composition according to age and gender in Tunisian children
1Department of Biochemistry and Toxicology, Fattouma Bourguiba Hospital, Monastir 5000, Tunisia. akram_alaya@yahoo.co.uk
Insights
Pediatric urinary calculi composition varies by age and gender. Calcium oxalate stones increase with age, while purine stones decrease, indicating evolving causes of urolithiasis.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nephrology
- Urology
- Medical Chemistry
Background:
- Limited data exists on age and gender influences on pediatric urinary calculi types.
- Understanding these epidemiological factors is crucial for diagnosis and treatment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the distribution of pediatric urinary calculus types based on patient age and sex.
- To identify shifts in the etiological characteristics of pediatric urolithiasis.
Main Methods:
- Infrared spectroscopy analysis of 205 pediatric urinary calculi (122 boys, 83 girls) collected between 1993-2007.
- Patient age stratification, with 54.6% under 5 years old.
Main Results:
- Calcium oxalate was the most common stone type (54.7%), prevalent in females.
- Struvite stones showed a male predominance.
- Calcium oxalate stone prevalence increased with age (42.9% in infants to 59.3% in older children).
- Purine stone prevalence decreased with age (28.6% in infants to 18.5% in older children).
Conclusions:
- Age-related changes in stone composition suggest evolving etiologies for pediatric urolithiasis.
- Increased calcium oxalate stones in older children and decreased purine stones highlight these shifts.
Objective:
Studies evaluating the influence of age and gender on the distribution of the various types of pediatric urinary calculi are scarce. The aim of this study was to highlight the modification of epidemiological characteristics of this pathology according to patients' sex and age.
Patients And Methods:
A total of 205 calculi (from 122 boys and 83 girls) were analyzed by infrared spectroscopy between 1993 and 2007; 54.6% of the patients were under 5 years.
Results:
Calcium oxalate was the predominant constituent in 54.7% of stones, followed by calcium phosphate and purines (14.6% each). We found a predominance of calcium oxalate in females (59.1% vs 50.8%), and a male preponderance for struvite stones (12.3% vs 1.2%). There was an increasing prevalence of calcium oxalate stones with age in both genders (42.9% in infants vs 59.3% in older children). Purine stones were predominant in 20% of cases, but prevalence decreased with age (28.6% in infants vs 18.5% in older children).
Conclusion:
The increase in calcium oxalate stones in school-age children and the decrease in stones containing purines confirm a change in the etiology of urolithiasis according to age.
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