The Effect of Preoperative Tamsulosin on Ureteroscopic Access in Below 16 Years Children

Background: Urolithiasis is the frequent condition in school age children. The treatment modalities for renal stone can be just observation to allow to eliminate spontaneously, expulsive medical treatment, ureterolithotomy and ureteroscopy.Objective: To determine the effect of preoperative tamsulosin on success of ureteroscopicaccesin below 16 years children.Materials and Methods: This case control study was conducted on records of 110 patients at department of Urology, Saidu Teaching Hospital, Swat. Half cases recieved preoperative tamsulosin and half not. The children below 16 years who received ureteroscopy, Pakistani national and both gender were included. Children who undergone the ureteroscopy or stent placement in last 12 months, those who received preoperative tamsulosin for less than a week (cases only) and with abnormal genitourinary systems were excluded.  Chi-square test and student t test was used for comparison of data. Logistic regression was run for controlling confounders.Results: The mean age was 12.91±2.73 years. The females were 61 (55.45%) and the males were 49 (44.55%). The procedure of ureteroscopic access was successful in 40 (72.73%) in cases who received tamsolusin and 29 (52.73%) those who did not. The difference was statistically significant (p=0.03). The only significant predictors for success of ureteroscopic access were type of treatment received and BMI. The success was more in cases who received preoperative tamsulosin (40, 72.7%) than control group (29, 52.7%) statistically (p=0.01). Conclusion: One week preoperative use of tamsulosin can increase the success rate of ureteroscopic access in below 16 years old children.