Urolithiasis in childhood

The management of 131 children with urinary calculi is described. Boys out-numbered girls 2:1. Five per cent of the patients had identifiable metabolic causes, while 78 per cent had infected renal lithiasis. With appropriate therapy, stone disease became inactive in 79 per cent of the children. The remaining 21 per cent continued with active disease. Stone formation may be regarded as a solitary complication or one of several manifestations of a large number of underlying disorders. Along with a thorough search for etiologic factors there must be an equally aggressive therapeutic effort. Because the disease is often sporadic, careful long-term follow-up of the patients with active as well as those with inactive stone disease is mandatory.