The aim of the present review was to look at the role of ureteroscopy (URS) for treatment of paediatric stone disease. We conducted a systematic review using studies identified by a literature search between January 1990 and May 2013. All English-language articles reporting on a minimum of 50 patients aged ≤18 years treated with URS for stone disease were included. Two reviewers independently extracted the data from each study. A total of 14 studies (1718 procedures) were reported in patients with a mean (range) age of 7.8 (0.25-18.0) years. The mean (range) stone burden was 9.8 (1-30) mm and the mean (range) stone-free rate (SFR) 87.5 (58-100)% with initial therapeutic URS. The majority of these stones were in the ureter (n = 1427, 83.4%). There were 180 (10.5%) Clavien I-III complications and 38 cases (2.2%) where there was a failure to complete the initial ureteroscopic procedure and an alternative procedure was performed. To assess the impact of age on failure rate and complications, studies were subcategorized into those that included children with either a mean age <6 years (four studies, 341 procedures) or a mean age >6 years. (10 studies, 1377 procedures). A higher failure rate (4.4 vs 1.7%) and a higher complication rate (24.0 vs 7.1%) were observed in children whose mean age was <6 years. URS for paediatric stone disease is a relatively safe procedure with a reasonably good SFR, but there seems to be a higher failure and complication rate in children aged <6 years.

Miniaturized PCNL techniques can deliver high SFRs with a small risk of Clavien I/II complications. The size of tract seems to influence the nature of complications, with higher hematuria and renal extravasation with increasing tract size.

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Purpose To report the outcomes of paediatric ureteroscopy (URS) for stone disease from a specialist endourology centre in the UK. Ureteroscopy for management of stone disease has increased worldwide and is now being done more commonly in the paediatric age group. Methods Data were analysed retrospectively from a database maintained between April 2010 and May 2018. Consecutive patients ≤ 16 years of age undergoing semi-rigid or flexible URS for stone disease were included. Stone size and stone-free rate (SFR) were routinely assessed using an ultrasound (USS) and/or plain KUB XR. Complications were graded according to the Clavien-Dindo classification and recorded within 30 days post-procedure and readmissions within 90 days after the procedure were also captured. Results Over the 8-year period between April 2010 and April 2018, 81 patients with a mean age of 8.8 years (range 18 months-16 years) and a male to female ratio 1:1.1 underwent 102 procedures (1.28 procedure/patient to be stone free). Of the 81 patients, 29 (35.8%) had comorbidities, with 26 (32%) having multiple comorbidities. The mean (± SEM) single and overall stone size was 9.2 mm (± 0.48, range 3-30 mm) and 11.5 mm (± 0.74, range 4-46 mm) respectively, with 22 (27.1%) having multiple stones. Thirty-five (34.7%) had stent in situ pre-operatively. The stone location was in the ureter (26.6%), lower pole (35.4%), and renal pelvis (16.5%), with 22/81(27%) having multiple stones and 21/102 (20.5%) where a ureteral access sheath (UAS) was used. With a mean hospital stay of 1.2 days, the initial and final SFR was 73% and 99%, respectively, and 61/102 (60%) had ureteric stent placed at the end of the procedure. While there were no intra-operative complications, the readmission rate was less than 1% and there were only three early complications recorded. This included a case each of prolonged admission for pain control (grade I), urinary retention (grade II) and post-operative sepsis requiring a brief ITU admission (grade IV). Conclusion Our study demonstrates that in appropriate setting a high stone-free rate can be achieved with minimal morbidity for paediatric patients. There is potentially a need to factor the increasing role of URS in future paediatric urolithiasis guidelines.

Purpose of ReviewThe incidence of urinary stone disease among the paediatric population is increasing. Whilst there has been a rise in the number of original studies published on ureteroscopy (URS) in children, critical review still remains under-reported.Recent FindingsA Cochrane style systematic review was performed to identify all original articles on URS (minimum of 25 cases) for stone disease in paediatric patients between Jan. 1996 and Dec. 2016. Based on the number of reported cases, centres were divided into medium (25–49 cases) and high (≥ 50 cases) volume studies.Thirty-four studies (2758 children) satisfied our search criteria and were included in this review. The mean stone size was 8.6 mm with an overall stone-free rate (SFR) of 90.4% (range 58–100). Medium-volume centres reported a mean SFR of 94.1% (range 87.5–100), whilst high-volume centres reported a mean SFR of 88.1% (range 58–98.5). Mean number of sessions to achieve stone-free status in medium-volume and high-volume groups was 1.1 and 1.2 procedures/patient respectively. The overall complication rate was 11.1% (327/2994). Breakdown by Clavien grade was as follows: Clavien I 69% and Clavien II/III 31%. There were no Clavien IV/V complications, and no mortality was recorded across any of the studies. The overall failure to access rate was 2.5% (76/2944).Medium-volume and high-volume studies had overall complication rates of 6.9% (37/530) and 12.1% (287/2222) respectively, but there was no significant difference in major or minor complications between these two groups.SummaryUreteroscopy is a safe and effective treatment for paediatric stone disease. Medium-volume centres can achieve equally high SFRs and safety profiles as high-volume centres. Despite the rarity of paediatric stone disease, our findings might increase the uptake of paediatric URS procedures.