Prevalence of Urolithiasis in Adults due to Environmental Influences: A Case Study from Northern and Central Jordan

The Urinary stone disease, known as urolithiasis, is one of the most prevalent health problems around the world. It is considered as one of the most serious disease in humans in terms of continuity, repetitions, and symptoms. This study aims to determine the prevalence of urolithiasis , the incidences, and the risk factors of this disease among the population of northern Jordan. Moreover, it studies the effects of environmental, geographical, and biological factors that contribute to the occurrence of urolithiasis. More than 250 samples of urinary stones were collected from five hospitals in Jordan over the course of five years. They were used to assess the logistical and polynomial regression for each potential risk factor in order to determine the prevalence of urolithiasis through the demographic features. The processing of the climatic, geographic, and geochemical data revealed that there is a relationship between the environmental factors and the urolithiasis prevalence. Strong relationships were observed between the prevalence of urinary stones and the population distribution, gender, and age of the individuals in the study area. The local climatic condition is characterized by high temperatures in summer, excessive exposure to sunlight, and semiarid to arid conditions as well as a high concentration of bicarbonates and fluoride in water. These factors were observed to affect human health by their contribution to the formation and growth of urinary stones. It was noted that the urolithiasis disease prevails increasingly at the age 40 years and is found more significant in males than in females. This study investigates the impact of environmental factors on the formation and composition of stones through diet in addition of the effect of water hardness on the formation of oxalate stones which optimize their impact in bicarbonate concentration 300 gm/L. Moreover, geographical factors play a big role in the formation, prevalence, and composition of urinary stones. As will be observed in this study, the factors contributing to the high rate of the disease and its prevalence in regions with high temperature 20 ºC, feature increased exposure to sunlight, altitude 500 m, and soil of the Vertisols type.