Biochemical and clinical effects of ethane-1-hydroxy-1,1-diphosphonate in calcium nephrolithiasis.

1. The short- and longer-term effects of ethane-1-hydroxy-1,1-diphosphonate (EHDP), an inhibitor of crystal growth and potential preventive agent against urinary tract stones in man, have been studied. 2. Measurement of urinary excretion of EHDP was used to define the best dosage regimen. When 4.4 mmol of EHDP mmol of EHDP was given in four divided doses the murinary concentration of EHDP achieved was high enough (10-5 mol/1) to inhibit the crystallization of calcium crystals throughout the day. 3. Nine patients with recurrent calcium stones were given this dose of EHDP daily for 12 months and seven were then studied for a further 12 months under placebo. During treatment with EHDP, inhibitory activity in urine towards precipitation of calcium phosphate was restored from low values to greatly above normal. This could be accounted for by the inhibitory effect of EHDP itself, coupled with an increase in urinary inorganic pyrophosphate. After stopping EHDP the excretion of EHDP rapidly fell to undetectable levels but the excretion of pryophosphate remained elevated throughout the 12 months of placebo treatment. EHDP also induced a rise in plasma phosphate and an increase in the urinary excretion of oxalic acid and uric acid, but these changes were all fully reversible when EHDP was stopped. 4. The average rate of stone formation per patient per year decreased from 2.4 to 0.2 during treatment with EHDP and remained low during the following 24 months. However, the dose needed for this effect is known to affect bone turnover and mineralization.