Comparison of percutaneous nephrolithotomy and retrograde intrarenal surgery in treating 40-20 mm renal stones

To compare the outcomes of percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) and retrograde intrarenal surgery (RIRS) in treating renal stones between 20 and 40 mm in diameter.
146 patients, who were treated with RIRS and 146 patients, who were treated with PCNL for renal stones between 20 and 40 mm in diameter were compared retrospectively using a matched-pair analysis. The operative and post-operative outcomes of both groups were analyzed retrospectively.
The mean age, gender, body mass index and stone laterality were similar between the groups. The mean stone size was 28.39 ± 4.67 mm for the PCNL group and 25.08 ± 6.07 mm for the RIRS group (P =.21). The mean operative times were statistically longer in the RIRS group, whereas the fluoroscopy times, hospitalization times and post-operative visual analogue scores were statistically higher in the PCNL group. The stone- free rates (SFR) after a single procedure were 91.7% in the PCNL group and 74% in the RIRS group (P = .04). After auxiliary procedures, the overall SFRs reached 94.4% for the PCNL group and 92.3% for the RIRS group (P = .52). No major complications were observed for both groups. Minor complication (Clavien 1-3) rates were 6.8% and 3.4% for the PCNL and RIRS group, respectively (P =.18).
RIRS has some advantages over PCNL such as shorter hospitalization times, shorter fluoroscopy times and less post-operative pain in treating renal stones between 20 and 40 mm in diameter. However, PCNL has a higher SFR with only a single session.