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Prevalence of kidney stones doubles in wake of obesity epidemic
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flob...@aol.com
May 25, 2012, 10:38:51 AM5/25/12
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http://www.uclahealth.org/body.cfm?id=561&action=detail&ref=1909
Date: 05/23/2012
The number of Americans suffering from kidney stones between 2007 and
2010 nearly doubled from 1994, according to a new study by researchers
at UCLA and the RAND Corp.
"While we expected the prevalence of kidney stones to increase, the size
of the increase was surprising," said Dr. Charles D. Scales Jr., a
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation/U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Clinical Scholar in the departments of urology and medicine at the David
Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. "Our findings also suggested that the
increase is due, in large part, to the increase in obesity and diabetes
among Americans."
The study, "The Prevalence of Kidney Stones in the United States" is
being presented today at the 2012 meeting of the American Urological
Association in Atlanta, Ga., and will appear in the July print edition
of the peer-reviewed journal European Urology.
This is one of the first studies to examine new data from the National
Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) that was collected from
2007 to 2010. NHANES is a program of studies within the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention to assess the health and nutritional
status of adults and children in the U.S.
Scales and his colleagues reviewed responses from 12,110 individuals and
found that between 2007 and 2010, 8.8 percent of the U.S. population had
a kidney stone — one out of every 11 people. In 1994, the rate was one
in 20. (No data about the national prevalence of kidney stones in the
U.S. were collected between 1994 and 2007.)
Because NHANES also asks about other health conditions and includes
measurements of height and weight, the researchers were able to identify
associations between kidney stones and other health conditions. The
results suggest that obesity, diabetes and gout all increase the risk of
kidney stones.
While the national obesity rate was 23 percent in 1994, more than a
third of all American adults are obese today, according to the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention.
The authors assert that these findings have important implications for
the public, as well as health care providers.
"People should consider the increased risk of kidney stones as another
reason to maintain a healthy lifestyle and body weight," said the
study's senior author, Dr. Christopher S. Saigal, principal investigator
within RAND Health for the Urologic Diseases in America project and
associate professor of urology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at
UCLA. "But physicians need to rethink how to treat and, more
importantly, prevent kidney stones."
Currently, the primary approach to treating patients is to focus on
those who already are suffering from kidney stones. Yet helping patients
maintain a healthy diet and body weight can reduce the number of
patients with kidney stones.
"Imagine that we only treated people with heart disease when they had
chest pain or heart attacks and did not help manage risk factors like
smoking, high cholesterol or high blood pressure," Scales said. "This is
how we currently treat people with kidney stones. We know the risk
factors for kidney stones, but treatment is directed towards patients
with stones that cause pain, infection or blockage of a kidney rather
than helping patients to prevent kidney stones in the first place."
In an accompanying editorial that will also appear in the journal, Dr.
Brian Matlaga, associate professor of urology at Johns Hopkins
University School of Medicine, writes that the cost of care for this
disease is enormous, and there is no indication that the coming years
will see any improvement in this trend. He also warns that, since
approximately 10 percent of the population has kidney stones, a greater
emphasis on prevention is imperative.
The study was funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive
and Kidney Diseases (N01-DK70003), as part of the Urologic Diseases in
America project based at UCLA and RAND.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars program has
fostered the development of physicians who are leading the
transformation of health care in the United States through positions in
academic medicine, public health and other leadership roles. Through the
program, future leaders learn to conduct innovative research and work
with communities, organizations, practitioners and policymakers on
issues important to the health and well-being of all Americans. This
program is supported, in part, through collaboration with the U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs.
Date: 05/23/2012
The number of Americans suffering from kidney stones between 2007 and
2010 nearly doubled from 1994, according to a new study by researchers
at UCLA and the RAND Corp.
"While we expected the prevalence of kidney stones to increase, the size
of the increase was surprising," said Dr. Charles D. Scales Jr., a
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation/U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Clinical Scholar in the departments of urology and medicine at the David
Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. "Our findings also suggested that the
increase is due, in large part, to the increase in obesity and diabetes
among Americans."
The study, "The Prevalence of Kidney Stones in the United States" is
being presented today at the 2012 meeting of the American Urological
Association in Atlanta, Ga., and will appear in the July print edition
of the peer-reviewed journal European Urology.
This is one of the first studies to examine new data from the National
Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) that was collected from
2007 to 2010. NHANES is a program of studies within the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention to assess the health and nutritional
status of adults and children in the U.S.
Scales and his colleagues reviewed responses from 12,110 individuals and
found that between 2007 and 2010, 8.8 percent of the U.S. population had
a kidney stone — one out of every 11 people. In 1994, the rate was one
in 20. (No data about the national prevalence of kidney stones in the
U.S. were collected between 1994 and 2007.)
Because NHANES also asks about other health conditions and includes
measurements of height and weight, the researchers were able to identify
associations between kidney stones and other health conditions. The
results suggest that obesity, diabetes and gout all increase the risk of
kidney stones.
While the national obesity rate was 23 percent in 1994, more than a
third of all American adults are obese today, according to the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention.
The authors assert that these findings have important implications for
the public, as well as health care providers.
"People should consider the increased risk of kidney stones as another
reason to maintain a healthy lifestyle and body weight," said the
study's senior author, Dr. Christopher S. Saigal, principal investigator
within RAND Health for the Urologic Diseases in America project and
associate professor of urology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at
UCLA. "But physicians need to rethink how to treat and, more
importantly, prevent kidney stones."
Currently, the primary approach to treating patients is to focus on
those who already are suffering from kidney stones. Yet helping patients
maintain a healthy diet and body weight can reduce the number of
patients with kidney stones.
"Imagine that we only treated people with heart disease when they had
chest pain or heart attacks and did not help manage risk factors like
smoking, high cholesterol or high blood pressure," Scales said. "This is
how we currently treat people with kidney stones. We know the risk
factors for kidney stones, but treatment is directed towards patients
with stones that cause pain, infection or blockage of a kidney rather
than helping patients to prevent kidney stones in the first place."
In an accompanying editorial that will also appear in the journal, Dr.
Brian Matlaga, associate professor of urology at Johns Hopkins
University School of Medicine, writes that the cost of care for this
disease is enormous, and there is no indication that the coming years
will see any improvement in this trend. He also warns that, since
approximately 10 percent of the population has kidney stones, a greater
emphasis on prevention is imperative.
The study was funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive
and Kidney Diseases (N01-DK70003), as part of the Urologic Diseases in
America project based at UCLA and RAND.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars program has
fostered the development of physicians who are leading the
transformation of health care in the United States through positions in
academic medicine, public health and other leadership roles. Through the
program, future leaders learn to conduct innovative research and work
with communities, organizations, practitioners and policymakers on
issues important to the health and well-being of all Americans. This
program is supported, in part, through collaboration with the U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs.
Colt T
May 25, 2012, 11:26:32 AM5/25/12
to
Beer drinkers rarely get kidney stones.
Ellen K.
May 25, 2012, 12:34:47 PM5/25/12
to
I can see the gout connection (i.e. people with gout might get uric acid
stones), but the only thing that comes to mind re obesity and diabetes is
that people with those conditions might be drinking a lot of cola (regular
or diet) -- cola contains phosphoric acid which can leach the calcium out of
the bones, resulting in calcium-based kidney stones. (BTDT.)
<flob...@aol.com> wrote in message news:jpo5ia$vio$1...@dont-email.me...
stones), but the only thing that comes to mind re obesity and diabetes is
that people with those conditions might be drinking a lot of cola (regular
or diet) -- cola contains phosphoric acid which can leach the calcium out of
the bones, resulting in calcium-based kidney stones. (BTDT.)
<flob...@aol.com> wrote in message news:jpo5ia$vio$1...@dont-email.me...
Colt T
May 25, 2012, 12:54:27 PM5/25/12
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