Prevalence of idiopathic hypercalciuria in children with urinary system related symptoms attending a pediatric hospital in Bandar Abbas in 2014

BACKGROUND: Idiopathic hypercalciuria is a group of diseases which can be manifested with urinary symptoms. Its importance is due to high prevalence, recurrent infections, and stone formations which are often asymptomatic. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of idiopathic hypercalciuria in children with urinary system related symptoms in Bandar Abbas in 2014. METHODS: This descriptive cross-sectional study was done in 2014 in a children’s hospital in Bandar Abbas (southern Iran) on 321 children who were between 2 months to 14 years old. Random morning urine sample was obtained from all the patients, and calcium to creatinine ratio was assessed for all the patients for two times. Hypercalciuria is defined as urinary calcium excretion rate that is greater than 4 mg/kg per 24 hours in a child older than two years of age. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS statistics 23.0 software and Chi-square and independent-samples t-test. RESULTS: Among the 321 children assessed, 153 (47.7%) had idiopathic hypercalciuria. The mean age of the children with idiopathic hypercalciuria was 55.20±43.71. Prevalence of idiopathic hypercalciuria was 48.3% in children with urinary tract infection, 54.9% and 53.6% in children with microscopic and macroscopic hematuria respectively, In children with dysuria, there were 52.1%, and 51.8% in children with frequency, 49.1% in children with kidney stone which was confirmed with sonography, 28.6% and 37.5% in children with nocturnal and daily urinary incontinency respectively. Results of this study showed no significant relationship between urinary system symptoms and idiopathic hypercalciuria (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: Hypercalciuria can be presented with different symptoms associated with urinary symptoms. Therefore, it is recommended to check the urinary calcium level in children with urinary symptoms with no definite etiology.