Ureteric colic and clinical evidence - Authors' reply

We thank Luca Villa and colleagues for their interest in our Article on the SUSPEND trial. They raise concerns with respect to confounding by the possible presence of a dilated urinary collecting system above the stone, and the appropriateness of our primary outcome measure. Dilatation of the collecting system is widespread in patients presenting with a ureteric stone. In the few patients who also have uncontrolled pain, sepsis, or impaired renal function, urgent intervention is indicated and this factor was an exclusion criterion for our study