Pediatric Kidney Stone Program

Overview

The Pediatric Kidney Stone Program at Mass General for Children provides comprehensive, family-centered care for infants, children and adolescents who have kidney stones. Our program combines the expertise of pediatric urologists with the skill and expertise of physicians from Pediatric Urology whose sole focus is on treating kidney stones.

Pediatric Specialists, Personalized Treatment

In the Pediatric Kidney Stone Program, we specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of kidney stones in children of all ages, from infants and children to adolescents and young adults. Our pediatric urologists have expertise in treating kidney stones, a disease that primarily affected adults in the past, but is now occurring more frequently in children.

Your child’s treatment begins with a board-certified pediatric urologist who develops a personalized care plan. We believe the family plays a vital role in your child’s care plan, so we involve you every step of the way. We use noninvasive and minimally-invasive methods whenever possible and coordinate care with specialists from the Pediatric Bone and Mineral Metabolism Disorders Clinic, when needed, to provide comprehensive care that can help prevent future stones. We also work closely with urologic surgeons, when needed.

State-of-the-Art-Equipment

MGfC is one of the few hospitals in the United States to have two of the most advanced kidney stone treatment technologies available onsite, which are:

• Noninvasive shockwave therapy
• Minimally-invasive laser technology (lithotripsy)

Our other treatment options include percutaneous treatment of stones, pyleo- or uretero-lithotomy or laparoscopic surgery.

A Seamless Transition for Lifelong Care

For young adults who have recurring stones, we facilitate a seamless transition to adult care to ensure ongoing care.

Patient Resources

View the full collection of patient resources from the following programs:

• Kidney Stone Program at MGfC
• Pediatric Nephrology and Kidney Transplant Program

Research and Clinical Trials

Our research focuses on technological innovations in the treatment of kidney stones and kidney stone diseases, including:

• The development of a GPS guidance system for stone surgery
• Use of BackStop® polymer to prevent retropulsion of stones during laser treatment
• Antibiotics and their role in the prevention of infectious complications from stone disease
• The natural history of stone disease as seen through stone composition over time in recurrent stone formers
• The correlation between vitamin D and the development of stone disease

A sample of our published research includes:

Sharma A, Linshaw MA. A novel compound heterozygous ROMK mutation presenting as late onset Bartter syndrome associated with nephrocalcinosis and elevated 1,25(OH)(2) vitamin D levels. Clin Exp Nephrol. 2011 Aug; 15(4):572-6

Dasgupta D, Wee MJ, Reyes M, Li Y, Simm PJ, Sharma A et al.. Mutations in SLC34A3/NPT2c are associated with kidney stones and nephrocalcinosis. J Am Soc Nephrol. 2014 Oct; 25(10):2366-75.

Yu Y, Sanderson, S, Reyes M, Sharma A et al.z C. Novel NaPi-IIc mutations causing HHRH in several unrelated families. Bone. 2012; 5(50):1100-6.