Younger, Older Kids Pass Stones at Similar Rates

Children younger than 10 years are as likely to pass stones as older children, according to a study published in The Journal of Urology (2009;181:2267-2271).

In addition, the study found that renal stones occur more commonly than ureteral stones in children aged 10 years and younger, which is the opposite of what is observed in older children,

Investigators at Albany Medical Center in Albany, N.Y., studied 80 pediatric patients who had 86 stones. The stone passage rates were 34% in the younger children and 29% in the older children, a nonsignificant difference. The groups also did not differ significantly with respect to mean stone size (5.5 and 6.9 mm, respectively).

Among the 39 patients aged 10 and younger, stones were ureteral in 43% and renal in 57%. In the 41 children older than 10, 69% had ureteral stones and 31% had renal stones.

From the June 01, 2009 Issue of Renal and Urology News