Urinary Stone Disease in Kano, North Western Nigeria

Background: Urinary stone disease is the third most common affliction of the urinary tract after urinary tract infection and pathologic conditions of the prostate. Although the disease is commoner in the developed countries, the incidence is also increasing in the developing countries. In this study, we sought to determine the pattern and treatment given for patients with urinary stones in our institution. Patients and Method: A 5 year retrospective study of patients treated for urolithiasis was conducted in a Teaching Hospital in North-western Nigeria. The age, sex, clinical presentations, investigations and treatment offered to the patients were reviewed. Results: A total of seventy six patients were treated for urinary stones during the study period. 58(76.3%) were males and 18(23.7%) females. Majority of patients 39(51.3%) presented with loin pain as the main presenting symptom. The diagnosis of stones was by plain abdominal Xray(KUB) in 68 patients and abdominal ultrasound scan in 46 cases. Urine culture was positive in 27 patients with E. coli as the predominant organism. All had normal serum calcium, phosphate and uric acid. 56(73.7%) patients had stones in the upper urinary tract and 20 (26.3%) in the lower urinary tract. Thirty four (44.7%) patients were found to have predisposing factors. Most of the patients 50(65.7%) were treated by open surgery and 26(34.2%) by endoscopic removal/lithotripsy.Conclusion: Urinary stone disease is common in this environment. Majority of the stones are radio-opaque on plain xrays. Significant number of patients had a predisposing factor and majority of the stones were found in the upper tract. Most of the patients were treated by open surgery while a significant number were treated with endoscopic removal/lithotripsy.Keywords: Urinary stones, Northern Nigeria, Treatmen