What causes kidney stones?
General information
The kidneys are bean shaped organs located under the ribs, in the middle of the back. The kidneys are responsible for the excretion of waste substances, the regulation of salts and removal of excess fluid. They also produce hormones for red blood cell development and the development of strong bones. The kidneys are part of the urinary system which includes; the bladder, ureters (tubes from the kidney to the bladder) and urethra (tube from the bladder to the outside of the body)How kidneys stones form
Kidney stones (renal calculi) can form when there is a concentration and build-up of chemicals normally found and excreted in urine. Urine generally contains substances that prevent this from happening, however this process does not always work. Kidney stones can be comprised of several chemicals with the usual combination being calcium, with either phosphate or oxalate. The build up of chemicals that cause kidney stones to form may be as a result of kidney infection, dehydration or metabolic imbalances.What causes kidney stones
There are a variety of reasons as to what causes kidney stones to form, however the exact cause may not always be known. Kidney stones tend to occur more commonly in the 20 to 40 year old age group.Possible causes include:
- Family history of kidney stones
- Poor fluid intake or dehydration
- Structural problems that cause pooling of urine and infection in the kidney.
- Metabolic problems such as;
- Excess vitamin D intake
- Hyperparathyroidism: the over production of hormones in the parathyroid glands
- Hyperuricosuria: a problem with uric acid metabolism
- Cystinuria: a rare disorder leading to the excess production of the chemical cystine
- Hyperoxaluri: an excess of the chemical oxalate
- Hypercalciuria: where the body absorbs too much calcium, the excess then concentrates and forms calcium oxalate or calcium phosphate stones.
- Infection in the urinary tract can also cause stone formation. This type of stone is called a struvite stone or large stones can be called staghorn calculi.
