An update on the changing epidemiology and metabolic risk factors in pediatric kidney stone disease

Nephrolithiasis in children is a painful and costly disease that may also have detrimental long-term effects on kidney function. Recent data provide evidence that the incidence of nephrolithiasis in children is rising. Children who are white, female, and adolescent seem to have the highest risk for forming symptomatic kidney stones. Although the reasons for the rising incidence and demographic discrepancies in pediatric nephrolithiasis are not yet clear, recent investigations into urine chemistry provide clues regarding predisposing metabolic risk factors. As more data emerge regarding epidemiologic and metabolic characteristics of pediatric kidney stone formers, we hope to gain a better understanding of the causes of kidney stone disease and, ultimately, provide better strategies for stone prevention in children.