Renal Stone Disease in Different Racial Groups

A study of racial differences in stone type and metabolic abnormalities over time suggests a convergence to a common pattern across the world. This conclusion is supported by studies of individuals of different races who cross over into another geographical and cultural milieu. Nevertheless, gender differences do exist, and some distinctive geographical differences in idiopathic stone patterns remain. The relative influence of genetic and environmental factors in the genesis of stone remains unknown, but appears to favor the hypothesis that the apparent racial differences arise from environmental and dietary influences.