Bariatric surgery has been associated with increased metabolic kidney stone risk and post-operative stone formation. A MEDLINE search, performed for articles published between January 2005 and November 2013, identified 24 pertinent studies containing 683 bariatric patients with 24-hour urine profiles, 6,777 bariatric patients with kidney stone incidence, and 7,089 non-stone forming controls. Of all procedures reviewed, only Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) was linked to post-operative kidney stone development, increasing stone incidence two-fold in non-stone formers (8.5%) and four-fold in patients with previous stone history (16.7%). High quality evidence from 7 studies (n=277 patients) before and after RYGB identified the following post-RYGB urinary lithogenic risk factors: 30% reduction in urine volume (the main driver of urinary crystal saturation), 40% reduction in urinary citrate (a potent stone inhibitor), and 50% increase in urinary oxalate (a stone promotor). Based on this, a summary of strategies to reduce calcium oxalate stone risk following RYGB is provided. Furthermore, recent experimental RYGB studies are assessed for insights into the pathophysiology of oxalate handling, and the literature in gut anion (oxalate) transport is reviewed. Finally, as a potential probiotic therapy for hyperoxaluria, primary data from our laboratory is presented, demonstrating a 70% reduction in urinary oxalate levels in four experimental RYGB animals after colonization with Oxalobacter formigines, a non-pathogenic gut commensal that uses oxalate as an energy source.
Overall, urine profiles and kidney stone risk following bariatric surgery appear modifiable by dietary adjustments, appropriate supplementation, and lifestyle changes. For hyperoxaluria resistant to dietary oxalate restriction and calcium binding, well-designed human investigations are needed to identify additional means of lowering urinary oxalate, such as Oxalobacter colonization or empiric pyridoxine therapy. Further investigations are also needed to determine tolerability and compliance of stone prevention strategies, such as citrate supplementation and hydration, in this population.
Keywords: Calcium oxalate supersaturation; Gastric bypass surgery; Hyperoxaluria; Hypocitraturia; Kidney stone; Metabolic acidosis; Morbid obesity; Nephrolithiasis.