Role of Preoperative Ureteral Stent on Outcomes of Retrograde Intra-Renal Surgery (RIRS) in Children. Results From a Comparative, Large, Multicenter Series

OBJECTIVE To assess outcomes of pre-stenting versus non-pre-stenting in children undergoing retrograde intrarenal surgery (RIRS) for intrarenal stones.METHODS Children/adolescent with kidney stones undergoing RIRS in 9 centers between 2015 and 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. Exclusion criteria: ureteral lithotripsy, bilateral procedures. Stone -free status was evaluated at 3-month and defined as a single residual fragment (RF) <= 2 mm/absence of multiple fragments. Patients were divided into two groups (Group 1 no-prestenting; Group 2 prestenting). Student's, Chi-square and Fisher's exact test was used to assess difference between groups. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analysis were performed to predict RF. Statistical significance: P-value <0.05. RESULTS Three hundred eighty-nine children/adolescents were included (192 patients in Group 1). Pre-stented patients were younger compared with non-prestented (mean age 8.30 +/- 4.93 vs 10.43 +/- 4.30 years, P < 0.001). There were no differences in stone characteristics (number, size, locations). Lasing and total surgical time were similar. Urinary tract infections were more prevalent in Group 2 (10.7%) compared to Group 1 (3.7%, P = 0.016). Sepsis occurred in 2.1% of patients in Group 2 and no patient in Group 1 (P = 0.146). 30.7% patients in Group 1 and 26.4% in Group 2 had RF (P = 0.322). In univariate logistic regression analysis, stone size was associated with RF (OR 1.12 95%CI 1.06-1.18, P < 0.001), whereas Thulium fiber laser with a lower incidence (OR 0.24 95%CI 0.06-0.69, p=0.020). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that stone size was associated with RF (OR 1.20 95%CI 1.08-1.36, P = 0.001).CONCLUSIONS RIRS showed similar stone-free rate in pre and non-prestented children/adolescents, although pre-stented patients were younger. A higher risk of post-operative infections was reported in pre-stented patients. UROLOGY 173: 153-158, 2023. (c) 2022 Elsevier Inc.