EARLY POST–OPERATIVE COMPLICATIONS OF PERCUTANEOUS NEPHROLITHOTOMY (PCNL) IN TERTIARY CARE SETTING OF KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA

Submission: 07 November 2025 | Acceptance: 05 December 2025 | Publication: 25 December 2025

Imad Ahmad¹, Muhammad Nasir Jamil¹, Muhammad Saleem¹, Farhan Ahmad¹, Muhammad Shahzad¹, Murad Ali²

¹Ayub Teaching Hospital Abbottabad, KPK, Pakistan

²Khyber Teaching Hospital Peshawar, KPK, Pakistan

ABSTRACT

Background: While percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) is the gold-standard intervention for large renal calculi, reported complication rates vary widely (20-83%). There is a scarcity of precise data on early postoperative outcomes following PCNL from tertiary care settings in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region.

Objective: This study aimed to ascertain the frequency of early postoperative complications in patients undergoing PCNL at a tertiary care hospital in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Methods: We conducted this descriptive study in the Department of Urology, Ayub Teaching Hospital, Abbottabad, from 5^th August, 2025. A cohort of ninety-seven patients scheduled for PCNL was recruited through consecutive non-probability sampling. Demographic, operative, and outcome data (including fever, hemorrhage, and stone clearance within one week) were gathered via a structured proforma and analyzed with SPSS version 27.0.

Results: The mean patient age was 35.51 ± 14.43 years, and a majority were male (52.6%). Complications occurred in 37.1% (n=36) of cases. The most common complication was postoperative fever (≥38°C), affecting 26.8% (n=26) of patients, followed by significant hematuria indicating hemorrhage (13.4%, n=13). A stone-free status was achieved in 45.4% (n=44) of procedures. Statistical analysis revealed no significant correlations between the incidence of complications and age, gender, BMI, stone size, or operative duration (p > 0.05).

Conclusion: The findings indicate a significant rate of early complications, chiefly fever and hemorrhage, post-PCNL. Importantly, standard patient and stone characteristics did not emerge as significant risk factors, highlighting the procedural consistency and safety of PCNL across varied demographics within a tertiary care context.

Keywords: Percutaneous nephrolithotomy, PCNL, postoperative complications, fever, hemorrhage, stone clearance, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, tertiary care, urology