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One of the more common causes of kidney stones is hypercalciuria, an elevated concentration of calcium in the urine.

You may have an increased risk of developing kidney stones if close family members have been diagnosed with this problem.

Some people are more susceptible to forming kidney stones, and genetics play a significant role

Kidneys filter our blood and produce urine to rid the body of waste products

The kidneys filter our blood; they remove waste products from the body and help regulate various chemicals important for body function. The waste products are deposited into urine, which drains from the kidneys into the bladder through narrow tubes called ureters. When the bladder fills and there is an urge to urinate, the bladder empties through the urethra, a much wider tube than the ureter.

In some people chemicals in the urine crystallize and form stones

Kidney stones are solid accretions of minerals that are normally dissolved in urine. They can form either inside the kidneys or within the bladder. In general, kidney stones develop as a result of an abnormally high concentration of substances such as calcium and uric acid, which accrete as crystals when there is not enough fluid to dilute them. The size of kidney stones can vary from that of a grain of sand to the size of a golf ball.

Kidney stones are one of the most common disorders of the urinary tract

Kidney stones are a common disorder in the Western world. The lifetime risk of developing a kidney stone exceeds 12% for men and 5% for women in the United States. If untreated, about half of those who have had a kidney stone once will have another within 5-10 years.

An elevated concentration of calcium in the urine is partly genetically determined

There are different types of kidney stones. The exact cause depends on the type of stone. One of the more common causes of kidney stones is hypercalciuria, an elevated concentration of calcium in the urine. Hypercalciuria is likely to be caused by many different factors. However, family studies demonstrate that there is a significant inherited component to kidney stone development. Thus, up to 70% of people with hypercalciuria have relatives with kidney stones.

deCODEme calculates your genetic risk for developing kidney stones

Scientists at deCODE Genetics have found a common genetic variant in the CLDN14 gene on chromosome 21 that is associated with increased concentration of urinary calcium and risk of developing kidney stones.

The deCODEme Genetic Scan identifies a variant (rs219778) in the CLDN14 gene and provides an interpretation of the risk for developing kidney stones in individuals of European descent. Risk information for other ethnicities is currently unavailable.

This content was last reviewed on February 08, 2010.

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