Urinary stones occur commonly in adults, but can occur in children as well. In children, stone formation is more likely to be associated with an underlying metabolic abnormality or an anatomic abnormality of the urinary tract.
The diagnosis of stones in children is usually made with a renal bladder ultrasound, or less commonly, a CT scan of the abdomen. Surgical management of pediatric stone disease is usually an endoscopic procedure that can be performed on an outpatient basis. Because of the high incidence of metabolic abnormalities, children with stones undergo a complete metabolic evaluation after they have been rendered stone free. Children who develop one stone are almost always at risk for future stone formation, and they therefore require long term follow-up.