title: Urine citrate and renal stone disease.
abstract: Calcium stone disease is attributable to supersaturation of the urine with calcium and other salts, the presence of substances that promote crystallization and a deficiency of inhibitors of crystallization. Citrate is a potent inhibitor of calcium oxalate and calcium phosphate stone formation whose excretion is diminished in some patients with stone disease owing to idiopathic causes or secondary factors such as bowel disease and use of thiazides. The pH within the proximal tubule cells is an important determinant of citrate excretion. Multivariate analysis has shown that the urine concentrations of calcium and citrate are the most important factors in stone formation. In uncontrolled studies potassium citrate, which increases urinary citrate excretion, appears to be promising as a therapeutic agent for patients with stone disease and hypocitraturia refractory to other treatment. On the other hand, there are potential drawbacks to sodium alkali therapy, such as the precipitation of calcium phosphates.
authors.affiliation: Division of Nephrology, Toronto Western Hospital, Ont.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Goldberg
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Grass
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vogl
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rapoport
authors.forename: D G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Oreopoulos
mesh_terms: D002951:Citrates / Q000502:physiology / Q000627:therapeutic use / Q000652:urine*; D019343:Citric Acid; D006801:Humans; D007669:Kidney Calculi / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D002951:Citrates; D019343:Citric Acid