General Versus Spinal Anesthesia in RIRS

The impact of anesthesia type on Retrograde Intrarenal Surgery (RIRS) outcomes remains a subject of ongoing debate. Several studies have compared general anesthesia (GA) and spinal anesthesia (SA) in endourological procedures, with conflicting results regarding operative time, complication rates, and stone-free outcomes. Importantly, the interaction between anesthesia type and stone characteristics-particularly stone size-has not been fully elucidated. Therefore, this study aims to conduct a retrospective comparative analysis of general versus spinal anesthesia in patients undergoing RIRS at Qena University Hospital, with particular emphasis on the effect of stone size stratification on perioperative outcomes.