Endoscopic treatment of vesical stones in children

Objective: to evaluate the effectiveness of endoscopic treatment of vesical stones in children using a pneumatic lithotripter design: retrospective study. setting: hospital based study. materials and methods: thirty five children underwent endoscopic treatment of vesical stones at the children's hospital,lahore,between march 2006 and september 2007. the probe of a pneumatic lithotripter,inserted through an operating cystosope,was employed to fragment the stones. results: their age ranged from 10 months to 12 years (mean 3.8 +/- 2.7 years). the male:female ratio was 33:2. the size of the stones ranged from 0.8 to 3.0 cm (mean 1.4 +/- 0.8cm). there was no complication related to the procedure except for transient mild haematuria. all patients were rendered stone free. the hospitalization time was 1-3 days. conclusion: the endoscopic procedure is safe,efficient,minimally invasive and cost effective mode of treatment of vesical stones in children.