A retrospective study of the seasonal pattern of urolithiasis

Abstract

This retrospective descriptive study was conducted among patients who presented with variable symptoms of urolithiasis at the Department of Surgery and Urology of Gulf Medical College Hospital and Research Centre (GMCHRC), Ajman, United Arab Emirates (UAE), in order to assess whether the occurrence of urolithiasis differed in relation to season, temperature and humidity. A checklist was used for abstracting the case record and analysis was performed using PASW 17 version. Maximum number of cases was below the age of 40 years, with a male to female ratio of 5.2:1. The present study revealed a higher number of cases during summer compared with the other seasons, but it was not statistically significant. No significant correlation was seen between atmospheric temperature, relative humidity and number of cases with urolithiasis. Our study also revealed that the admission rate for renal colic was higher in the summer season as against the rest of the year, although the difference was not significant. In conclusion, urolithiasis is an important public health issue that predominantly affects people of the productive age groups. Men are affected more commonly than women. No significant seasonal variation in the number of patients with urolithiasis was observed in the study.