Biochemical diagnosis in 3040 kidney stone formers in Argentina.

Nephrolithiasis is a frequent condition in urology that has an important recurrence and high impact in health economy. Knowing the biochemical abnormalities implicated in its pathogenesis is mandatory to establish therapeutic aims. Our objectives are to present the results in 3040 kidney stone formers in Argentina. All patients were selected after completing an ambulatory metabolic protocol with diagnostic purposes. There were 1717 men, (56.48%), with a mean age of 45±12 years, and 1323 women, (43.52%), mean age 44±12 years. 2781 patients had biochemical abnormalities, (91.49%), and were arbitrarily divided in two groups: those who had only one (single) biochemical abnormality (n=2156) and those who had associated abnormalities (n=625). No biochemical abnormalities were found in 259 patients (8.51%). The abnormalities present, single and associated, in order of frequency, were idiopathic hypercalciuria, (56.88%), hyperuricosuria (21.08%), unduly acidic urine (10.95%), hypocitraturia (10.55%), hypomagnesuria (7.9%), primary hyperparathyroidism (3.01%), hyperoxaluria (2.6%), and cystinuria (0.32%). We performed in 484 patient's stone composition and found calcium oxalate stones related to idiopathic hypercalciuria predominantly while uric acid stones to unduly acidic urine. In conclusion, the biochemical abnormalities described are similar to those found in a previous series of our own and to those reported in the literature. Its diagnosis is important to therapeutic purposes to avoid eventual recurrence.