Analysis of Mortality Trends Associated with Urolithiasis in the United States from 1999 to 2024: A Joinpoint Regression Study Examining Age, Gender, Ethnicity, and Geographic Variations

To analyze urolithiasis mortality trends in the United States between 1999 and 2024, focusing on demographic and geographic disparities.

Data Source: Data on death certificates for individuals aged ≥45 years were retrieved from the CDC WONDER database, using ICD-10 codes N20–N23 to identify urolithiasis-related deaths.
Statistical Analysis: Age-adjusted mortality rates (AAMRs) were computed, and Joinpoint regression was utilized to detect significant changes in mortality trends, stratified by region, sex, race/ethnicity, and age group.

Urolithiasis mortality rose from 0.22 to 0.72 per 100,000 population from 1999 to 2024.
Mortality growth was modest from 1999 to 2014 (1.94% annual change) but accelerated significantly from 2014 to 2024 (8.54% annual change).
The Northeast had the highest age-adjusted mortality rate (0.85 per 100,000), while the Midwest showed the most rapid increase (5.42% annual change).
Females had a higher age-adjusted mortality rate than males by 2024 (0.80 vs 0.68 per 100,000).
Non-Hispanic white individuals had the highest mortality rate (0.86 per 100,000), while non-Hispanic black individuals had the lowest (0.36 per 100,000).
Mortality increased with age, peaking at 5.72 per 100,000 among individuals aged 85 and older.

The study indicates a significant increase in urolithiasis mortality since 2014, with notable disparities across demographic and geographic groups.

Absolute mortality rates are low, and findings are based on death certificate data, which have inherent limitations.
Observations should be considered hypothesis-generating and require further validation through subsequent research.