[Oxalosis in patients on regular dialysis therapy]

The authors draw attention to the case of a 46-year-old man who developed after three years of regular dialyzation treatment three times a week the first manifestations of acquired generalized oxalosis. The oxalosis was most marked on the skin, skeleton, heart, and kidneys. Oxalosis was confirmed after eight years of dialysis after death by post-mortem and histological examination and microscopic detection of oxalate crystals. The authors recommend that as part of regular dialyzation treatment patients should not be given more than 100 mg ascorbic acid per day. Oxalates are also the end product of degradation of ascorbic acid and high doses may lead also to hyperoxalosis. Moreover deposits in some visceral organs, in particular the heart may cause clinical manifestations. In the authors patients they caused attacks of auricular flutter. Although these clinical manifestations develop only rarely, the latent form of acquired oxalosis is probably more frequent.