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Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and nitrogen porosimetry (NP): two novel techniques for the evaluation of urinary stone hardness

  • Urology - Original Paper
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Abstract

Purpose

To evaluate urinary stones using small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and nitrogen porosimetry (NP). Traditionally, stones are categorized as hard or soft based on their chemical composition. We hypothesized that stone hardness is associated not only with its chemical composition but also with its internal architecture. SAXS and NP are well-known techniques in material sciences. We tested whether SAXS and NP are applicable for evaluating human urinary stones and whether they provide information at the nanoscale level that could be useful in clinical practice.

Methods

Thirty endoscopically removed urinary stones were studied. Standard techniques for stone analysis were used to determine the stone composition. SAXS was used to evaluate the solid part of the stone by measuring the crystal thickness (T) and the fractal dimension (Dm/Ds), while NP was used to evaluate the porosity of the stone, i.e., the pore radius, pore volume, and specific surface area (SSA).

Results

All stones were successfully analyzed with SAXS and NP. Each stone demonstrated unique characteristics regarding T, Dm/Ds, pore radius, pore volume, and SSA. Significant differences in those parameters were seen among the stones with almost identical chemical compositions. The combination of high T, high SSA, low Dm/Ds, low pore volume, and low pore radius is indicative of a hard material and vice versa.

Conclusions

SAXS and NP can be used to evaluate human urinary stones. They provide information on stone hardness based on their nanostructure characteristics, which may be different even among stones with similar compositions

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Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Abbreviations

SWL:

Shockwave lithotripsy

SAXS:

Small-angle X-ray scattering

NP:

Nitrogen porosimetry

SEM:

Scanning electron microscopy

KS:

Kidney stone

FTIR:

Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy

SSA:

Specific surface area

CT:

Computed tomography

HU:

Hounsfield units

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Hephaestus Advanced Laboratory, Eastern Macedonia and Thrace Institute of Technology, Kavala, Greece

    Nick Vordos, Etienne F. Vansant, John W. Nolan & Athanasios Ch. Mitropoulos

  2. Department of Urology, Democritus University of Thrace, Dragana, 68100, Alexandroupolis, Greece

    Stilianos Giannakopoulos, Christos Kalaitzis, Ioannis Karavasilis & Stavros Touloupidis

  3. Laboratory of Adsorption and Catalysis, Department of Chemistry, University of Antwerpen, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium

    Etienne F. Vansant

  4. Department of Electrical Engineering, Eastern Macedonia and Thrace Institute of Technology, Kavala, Greece

    Nick Vordos & Dimitrios V. Bandekas

Authors
  1. Nick Vordos
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  2. Stilianos Giannakopoulos
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  3. Etienne F. Vansant
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  4. Christos Kalaitzis
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  5. John W. Nolan
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  6. Dimitrios V. Bandekas
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  7. Ioannis Karavasilis
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  8. Athanasios Ch. Mitropoulos
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  9. Stavros Touloupidis
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Contributions

NV, SG, and ST conceived the study, participated in its design. NV, SG, JW, and EV analyzed the data. NV, SG, DB, IK, CK, and AM participated in interpretation of data, as well as in drafting the manuscript and revising it critically. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Stilianos Giannakopoulos.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Ethical approval

The study was approved by the institutional review board of the University Hospital of Alexandroupolis, Greece.

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Vordos, N., Giannakopoulos, S., Vansant, E.F. et al. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and nitrogen porosimetry (NP): two novel techniques for the evaluation of urinary stone hardness. Int Urol Nephrol 50, 1779–1785 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11255-018-1961-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11255-018-1961-3

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