The trend change of incidence and treatment of urolithiasis between the 1980s and 2000s

Abstract

Purpose: The incidence of urolithiasis has recently shown an increasing tendency in relation to improvements in living conditions in Korea. With the development of extracorporeal shock wave lithotriptor (ESWL), endourology and other new instruments, urolithiasis has become easier to treat, without surgical intervention. The incidence and treatment of urolithiasis, between the 1980 and 2000, were evaluated. Materials and Methods: 328 and 1,142 patients with urolithiasis, either admitted between January 1981 and December 1984 or treated at the out-patient clinic between January 2001 and December 2004, respectively, were analyzed. Results: In the early 1980s, 328 (27.3%) patients of the total 1,203 admitted to the urology department had urolithiasis. In the early 2000s, 1,142 patients were treated for urolithiasis. The total number and incidence constantly increased over the stated period. The ratio of males to females was 1.3:1 in the 1980s and 2.0:1 in the 2000s. The occurrence rate for those under 20 years decreased, but increased after the 6th decade. And the seasonal occurrence was highest during the summer of the early 1980s, but there was no seasonal difference during the early 2000s. The incidences of lower ureteral, bladder and urethral calculi were decreased, but those of renal and upper ureteral calculi increased. In the management of urolithiasis, open surgery and expectant therapy decreased during the 2000s. In the endourological management of urolithiasis, the success rates of ESWL, percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PNL) and ureteroscopic removal of stone (URS) were 94.5, 86.6 and 96.4%, respectively. Conclusions: The incidence and treatment modalities of urolithiasis have changed, especially since the late 1980s.