Hello and welcome to the Stone News, a newsletter where we discuss every two months the most recent and relevant studies in stone disease.

Suscribe now

I'm pleased to review the best moments of this year's XXXIV National Meeting of the Lithiasis, Endourology, Laparoscopy and Robotics Groups (LELR), which took place in Bilbao on 30th and 31st January. This meeting of experts from different fields of urology brought together the latest advances and best practices in the treatment of lithiasis, endourology, laparoscopy and robotic surgery. 

This year's LELR 25 was a record-breaking event with up to 470 attendees, an unprecedented success. As President and part of the organising team, I would like to express my gratitude to all the participants, the pre-congress hands-on workshops complemented all the knowledge shared by the speakers and experts in the vibrant, enriching and thought-provoking discussions that gave the attendees a chance to engage and learn from the best.

I would also like to recognise the excellent work of the National Coordinators, Dr. Ballestero (H.U. Valdecilla, Santander) and Dr. Cansino (H.U. La Paz, Madrid) in their debut.

We will now highlight the most important aspects of this year's Congress:

1'

On the first day of the congress, Dr. Cansino led an update on the metabolism of lithiasis, with keynote speakers such as Dr. Galán (H.G.U. Dr Balmis, Alicante), Dr. Torrecilla (H.U. Bellvitge, Barcelona), Dr. Budía and Dr. Ramos (H.U.P. La Fe, Valencia) discussing very interesting topics on Cacchi-Ricci syndrome, the association between PTH and lithiasis, the very difficult to treat encrusted pyelitis and a thoughtful insight into the genetics of stone disease. 

Later, Dr. Mainez (H.U., La Paz, Madrid) moderated an excellent debate on the metabolic evaluation of the stone patient from different points of view, defended by Dr. Lopez (H. Clínic, Barcelona) and Dr. Argüelles (H.U. Virgen del Rocío, Sevilla), giving rise to a heightened debate on this subject.

1'

In this symposium sponsored by Devicare, Dr. Piñero explained the basics of the non-surgical approach to lithiasis and the different treatment options for the prevention of kidney stones, highlighting the use of:

• Lit-Control^® pH Balance for patients with calcium-based kidney stones
• Lit-Control^® pH Up and Theobromine for patients with uric acid kidney stones.
• Lit-Control^® pH Down for patients with infectious kidney stones.
• Lit-Control^® pH Meter 2.0  for patients requiring urine pH monitoring.

Dr. Piñero reviewed all the clinical evidence on the products and provided practical recommendations for their use in daily clinical practice.

1'

Devicare organized the award ceremony of the V Edition of the Clinical Case Competition related to the non-surgical clinical management of Renal Lithiasis. Mr. Rosendo Garganta, Devicare’s CEO, took to the stage to present the competition and announce the winners.

This edition was special because was the first to be held at an international level and had a record number of participants, with 25 clinical cases presented. 

Of all the cases, the Best Clinical Case in the World went to Dr. Darío Jesús Castillo from the Hospital La Fe in Valencia, who received the award and a full scholarship to the EAU25 Congress in Madrid. 

Dario presented an excellent clincal case about the management of kidney stones in a patient with Distal Renal Tubular Acidosis and Horseshoe Kidney. In this case, with a preventive treatment with Lit-Control^® pH Up and Lit-Control^® pH Balance and a periodic 24-hour urine monitoring the patient showed no recurrence of kidney stones after two years.

A second prize for the Best Clinical Case in Spain was also awarded to Dra. Lucía Diéguez from the Puigvert Foundation in Barcelona with an innovative case on the use of Lit-Control^® pH Balance in the treatment of kidney stones in three patients with Dent's disease, reducing the calciuria without side effects or alteration of the urinary pH levels, providing an effective and safe option in the management of these patients.

It was also announced that the next edition of the competition opened its aplication period on 1 February of 2025 until 31 October of 2025.

At the end of the event, Prof. Grases took to the stage to announce the winner of the II Edition of the Professor Grases Award for the Best Thesis on Renal Lithiasis. The winner of this award was Dr. Guzmán Ordaz from the Hospital La Fe in Valencia, who received the trophy and was rewarded for his fantastic work with an economic donation sponsored by the University of the Balearic Islands.

His thesis aims to coordinate the factors influencing urolithiasis to create a new management model. He uses the Kaiser Permanente population pyramid to stratify urolithiasis patients into different risk groups, define their follow-up and evaluate outcomes compared to traditional EAU guidelines.

1'

On the first day of the congress there was the long-awaited tribute to Dr. Gaspar Ibarluzea, co-founder and former president of the Basque Urology Society and a national and international reference in urology, who retired in 2024 after 43 years of practice.

It was a very special moment that served as a well-deserved recognition of his entire career and contribution to the field of urology.

Dr. Ibarluzea has many milestones to his name. He was the first robotic surgeon in the Basque Country and a visionary of new technologies in urology. 

He was a pioneer in the new techniques developed in the 1980s for the treatment of renal lithiasis, such as ESWL and all endoscopic techniques of the urinary tract, as well as a precursor of all urological laparoscopic techniques since the early 1990s. 

He is the father of the Galdakao modified Valdivia position and influenced the supine position for the percutaneos approach.

He was a teacher, guide, friend and role model for many endourologist that now lead the new generations. A simple man with a very complex psique, he would be missed but his teaching will endure and adapt for the years to come in the back of the head of all who trained under his wing.

To my mentor and friend, always grateful, this tribute was but a little glimpse of everyhting you acomplished for Urology, endourology and the treatment of stones.

1'

1'

This prospective study analysed the development of residual lithiasis fragments (RFs) after percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PNL) in 718 renal units. It was found that 40.5% of the renal units had RFs after the procedure.

The mean volume of lithiasis at diagnosis was 2,479 mm³. 54% of the renal units with RFs developed clinical events during a median follow-up of 39 months, the most common being associated symptoms (33.6%), need for additional treatment (31.3%) and growth of fragments (27.1%).

The main conclusion is that RFs are a common and clinically relevant entity due to the high rate of associated events, highlighting the need for close and prolonged monitoring of these patients and the need for medical management with products such as Lit-Control^®. Further studies are needed to identify predictive factors.
 

1'

Within the framework of the congress, the first official basketball game between urologists was organised in collaboration with Devicare.

The game took place in Bilbao on the afternoon of Tuesday 28th and brought together urologists from different regions of Spain (Galicia, Basque Country, Madrid and Catalonia). 

Two teams, led by Dr. Mikel Gamarra and Dr. Daniel Pérez-Fentes, faced each other in a tightly contested match refereed by a former CBA professional referee.

I was delighted to host this meeting in my home town, where I could not only learn from the best, but also share with future generations and dispel doubts. The future is safe in your hands, and it's so bright it's dazzling.

We look forward to seeing you at the next LELR Congress in Murcia in 2026.