An epidemiological study on the composition of urinary stones in Morocco in relation to age and sex

ObjectiveTo study the composition of urinary stones, evaluate the percentage of each stone type and assess the association between the stone type and the sex and age in Moroccan stone formers.Subjects and methodsThis epidemiologic study of urolithiasis was carried out in the Rabat-Salé region (Morocco) between 2008 and 2013. A series of 828 urinary stones from 537 men and 265 women was analyzed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in order to evaluate the percentage of each stone type. The results were compared to the patients’ demographic data in order to assess the association between the stone type and the sex and age.ResultsThe overall sex ratio (male/female) was 2.03:1, and the majority of patients were aged between 40 and 60. The majority of stones were composed of calcium oxalate (66.6%), followed by anhydrous uric acid (18.1%), carbapatite (7.9%), struvite (4.4%) and cystine (0.6%). Anhydrous uric acid stones in this study accounted for a relatively higher rate in males and females compared to that reported in other studies. Our results also showed a higher percentage of carbapatite stones in females compared to males and an increase of the prevalence of anhydrous uric acid stones with age. In addition, the percentage of calcium oxalate stones decreased, while that of carbapatite stones increased with age.