Kidney stones: more problems with the heart

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MunichDiabetes, obesity and high blood pressure can cause kidney stones - this has been known for a long time. Chinese researchers have now discovered that there is also a link between kidney stones and cardiovascular disease.

Yanqiong Liu and his colleagues from the First Affiliated Hospital in Guangxi, China, evaluated the data from a total of 50,000 patients with kidney stones and 3.5 million healthy people as a control group. In their calculations, the researchers took into account other risk factors for problems with the heart, such as obesity and blood pressure.

The result: patients with stones in their kidneys suffered from coronary artery disease 19 percent more often than healthy people. The risk of stroke for patients with kidney stones also increased by 40 percent.

The scientists were particularly surprised by the fact that women with kidney stones also increased the risk of heart attacks. The researchers have yet to find out why this does not apply to men.

Do good to the heart

“People who develop kidney stones should prevent heart disease. Lifestyle changes such as losing weight, eating healthy, quitting smoking and exercising also reduce the risk of kidney stones, ”said Thomas Manley, director of the National Kidney Foundation. In general, further studies are necessary to clarify whether the relationship depends on gender or not. It is also still unclear whether kidney stones actually beat the heart or simply have causes similar to cardiovascular diseases.

Accumulated waste

If waste is not eliminated from the body in the urine, kidney stones can form. They either stay in the organ or are flushed into the ureter. Larger stones get stuck and cause severe pain or cramps, with nausea and vomiting. The number of kidney stone patients has risen sharply over the past thirty years. Around one in ten gets kidney stones once in their life. (away)

Source: Liu, Yanqiong et al .: Kidney Stones and Cardiovascular Risk: A Meta-analysis of Cohort Studies, American Journal of Kidney Diseases, Volume 64, Issue 3, 402-410, September 2014.

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