Epidemiological Characteristics of Renal Colic and Climate-Related Causes in a Continental Area in Spain

The aim of this study was to analyze the incidence of renal colic (RC) in a northwestern area of Spain and its relationship with seasonal and meteorological characteristics.

We examined 700,257 cases that presented at the emergency room (ER) between 2005 and 2013. We reviewed data such as age, gender, arrival at ER, tests performed and destination after ER. Monthly data regarding temperature, humidity and hours of daylight were taken into account. The Student t-test, the Mann-Whitney test and the Chi-square test were used for the statistical analysis. RC visits were correlated with meteorological characteristics using the Pearson correlation coefficients.

A total of 9,330 cases were diagnosed as RC episodes (1.41% of total cases presented). The age range was 14-100 years and mean age was 47 years. Prevalence in men was higher (55.6%) than in women (44.4%). After the seasonal decomposition analysis by month, a significant increase in RC incidence was observed in the months of June, July, August and December (107-114%). There is a statistically significant correlation between mean monthly temperature and RC visit rate (R 0.33, p < 0.001).

The incidence of RC in our region is slightly higher than the one described in the literature. A significant increase in RCs is observed in the summer months, as well as a significant correlation between incidence and temperature.