The safety of ureteral stenting with the use of potassium citrate for management of renal uric acid stones

OBJECTIVES: The objective is to evaluate the relative risks of ureteric stents application while managing uric acid stones with potassium citrate in terms of stone encrustations and urinary tract infection (UTI). PATIENTS AND METHODS: We prospectively enrolled patients with renal uric acid stones who received K citrate from 2013 to 2018. Patient's demographics were collected. All patients were evaluated using noncontrast computed tomography (CT) scan to measure the stone size and density. JJ ureteric stent was inserted prior to the initiation of treatment. At follow-up, all patients underwent urine analysis for pH and to detect UTI. CT was repeated at 1 month and those patients who showed incomplete stone resolution underwent another course of treatment for another month. CT was repeated prior to stent removal. The presence of encrustations was inspected and collected. RESULTS: We collected 59 patients with a median age of 36 years (18–73) and median stone burden of 26 mm(3) (15–50). The median stone density was 310 HU (175–498). Twenty-one patients (35.6%) received K citrate treatment for 1-month, while the remaining patients had 2 months treatment. Sixteen patients (27.1%) had a complete stone dissolution, 41 patients (69.5%) had more than 50% decrease of stone burden while only 2 patients (3.4%) had stones with poor dissolution. Four patients (6.8%) experienced UTI while 2 patients (3.4%) had visible JJ encrustations. Most of these complications occurred when the treatment was offered for the 2(nd) month. CONCLUSION: Short-term use of ureteral stents is safe during the management of uric acid stones with K citrate.