Bladder stone in a three-year-old Nigerian child with posterior urethral valve: a case report

Stone in the bladder is an uncommon presentation in the tropics, especially in children. Its rarity makes the index of suspicion to be low. Patients presenting with it may be mistaken for urinary tract infection (UTI) because of the presence of frequency and dysuria.

To present a rare cause of urinary bladder stone in a child in the tropics.

The patient, a three-year-old boy, presented with recurrent episodes of dysuria and stragury for a duration of about one year. Work up included clinical evaluation and laboratory assessments, results of which informed surgical intervention.

The child had been treated repeatedly for urinary tract infection. He was acutely ill with suprapubic tenderness dysuria and poor urinary stream. He was hypertensive. Micturating cystourethrography showed posterior urethral valves and a bladder stone. He had vesicolithotomy and valvotomy with improvement of his blood pressure.

The coexistence of bladder stone with PUV coupled with delayed diagnosis may be a predisposing factor to hypertension in children. Conventional surgical treatment gives good results.