The process of renal stone formation is complex, multifactorial, and variable depending on the type of stone. The microbiome, whether by direct or indirect action, is a factor that both promotes the formation and protects from developing of renal stones. It is a highly variable factor due to the great interindividual and intraindividual variability that it presents. In recent years, with the incorporation of nonculture-based techniques such as the high-throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA bacterian gene, both intestinal and urinary microbiota have been deeply studied in various diseases such as the kidney stone disease.
This review has examined the new insights on the influence of the intestinal and urinary microbiome in nephrolithiasis disease and its usefulness as a diagnostic and prognostic tool, highlighting its contribution to the pathogenesis, its ability to modulate it and to influence disease development.
The incidence of urolithiasis has been increasing considerably. These patients represent a significant expense for national health systems. With the knowledge of the influence of the urobiome and intestinal microbiota on the urolithiasis, it could be possible to modulate it to interrupt its development.
Current opinion in urology. 2022 Oct 10 [Epub ahead of print]
Juan A Galán-Llopis, Pedro Sánchez-Pellicer, Vicente Navarro-López
Department of Urology, General University Hospital Dr Balmis; Investigación Sanitaria y Biomédica de Alicante (ISABIAL), Alicante., MiBioPath Research Group, Department of Clinical Medicine, Health Sciencies Faculty, Catholic University of Murcia, Murcia., MiBioPath Research Group, Department of Clinical Medicine, Health Sciencies Faculty, Catholic University of Murcia, Murcia; Infectious Diseases Unit, University Hospital of Vinalopó-Fisabio, Elche, Spain.