Melamine has been the main factor leading to infant
urinary calculi occurring on a rather wide scale in China in 2008, which were the results of a rapid aggradation of metabolites such as
cyanuric acid diamide,
cyanuric acid, etc., causing
uric acid stone to accumulate. Here, we present a report on 24 infants who were admitted to our department, their ages ranging from 3 to 10 months. All of these infants had a confirmed history of having been fed with the "Sanlu" brand milk
powder, which contained excessive levels of
melamine, with the highest being 2,563 mg/kg. The diagnosis, medical treatment and follow-up by ultrasonography at 1, 3, 6, 12 months were reported. 22 cases of these infants were rehabilitated after medical treatment and 1 infant underwent pyelolithotomy for relieving an obvious ureter obstruction. No recurrence was found in these babies thereafter. Another infant died from rapidly worsening
renal failure. Therefore, this series of cases have demonstrated that
melamine contained in the "Sanlu" milk
powder was the main cause of these
urinary stones. Urine alkalinization and stone liberalization were the most effective treatments. Fast diagnosis and treatment of acute obstructive
urolithiasis may prevent the development of
acute renal failure, which is associated with high morbidity and mortality rates.