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Education of this topic to the general Irish population and in particular to parents and young males is not established. Both knowledge of testicular torsion and awareness of the urgency in presentation are factors that determine parents promptness in seeking medical attention for their child in the setting of acute scrotal pain.

Introduction: A seasonal variation in the frequency of acute stone presentations has been observed in studies from the United States, Africa, and Asia. The increased incidence of acute stone presentations during periods of warm weather has been attributed to both the dehydrating effect of elevated temperatures and the vitamin D related increase in calciuria during periods of increased sunshine. The aim of this study is to establish whether the association between various meteorologic parameters and the frequency of acute stone presentations also exists in a European climate. Methods: All computed tomography kidneys, ureters and bladder scans performed by Emergency Departments within the Dublin Midland Hospital Group between June 2017 and September 2018 were identified from the national radiologic database. The date of scan in addition to stone parameters (site, size, and side) was recorded. These data were then correlated with weather recordings obtained from the Irish meteorologic office. Results: A total of 2441 patients were investigated for suspected renal colic during the study period of which 781 were confirmed to have ureteral stones. An increased frequency of acute stone presentations was observed during the summer months of both years (June, July, and August). Unexpectedly, the heat wave of summer 2018 was not associated with an increased frequency of nephrolithiasis compared with summer 2017. Conclusion: There is an increased frequency of acute nephrolithiasis during the summer months in Ireland. Health care services should be tailored to expect an increase in service needs during these periods of increased activity.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the rising trend in the incidence and mortality of renal cell carcinoma in Ireland. Methods: Data from the National Cancer Registry of Ireland on primary adenocarcinomas of the kidney from 2003 to 2013 were evaluated. Statistical analysis was performed on the data using IBM SPSS statistics V24 software package and Microsoft Excel Software. Results: There were 3801 cases of adenocarcinoma of the kidney with 29% of tumours (n=1103) being found incidentally. The age-adjusted incidence rate of renal cell carcinoma in 2003 was 4.66 per 100,000 women and 8.78 per 100,000 men. These figures have risen to 5.78 and 13.14 in 2013, respectively. There was an annual percentage change of +2.2% for women and +4.1% for men from the years 2003 to 2013. For both sexes the age-standardised all-cause mortality rate for renal adenocarcinoma increased from 1.07 per 100,000 in 2003 to 4.32 ± 0.06 per 100,000 in 2013, an annual percentage change of +15%. Age-adjusted mortality rates in the female population in Ireland increased from 0.78 to 2.66, an annual percentage change of +13.1% and from 1.41 to 6.04 in men, an annual percentage change of +15.8%. Conclusion: There is a paradox emerging in Ireland, with both rising survival rates for renal cell carcinoma and rising mortality rates. While the increased incidence of renal cell carcinoma in Ireland can be attributed somewhat to the increased use of various imaging modalities, it may also be attributed to the significant rise in modifiable risk factors as seen in other developed countries, namely hypertension, obesity, and smoking.

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