[Morphological typing of calcium oxalate calculi and etiopathogenic findings]

The occurrence of different hydrate forms derived from a single chemical compound results from the selective conditions of crystallization. Identification of the crystalline phases and the structural types of stones may provide the physician with important data concerning the etiopathogenesis of the complaint. The authors have studied the crystallization of calcium oxalate in an aqueous solution and the process of spontaneous crystalluria. They noted that whewellite resulted, in many cases, from a concentration of oxalate, and weddellite from a concentration of calcium. This article discusses the correlations between morphological types of oxalate stones, the localization of the stones in the urinary tract, the biological disorders noted, and the sex of the patients.