Association between gastroesophageal reflux disease and kidney stone disease in cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses.

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) has been linked to multiple systemic conditions, but its association with kidney stone disease (KSD) has not been well established. This study examined whether GERD is associated with an increased risk of KSD in a large Taiwanese population. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 121,550 Taiwan Biobank participants, including 16,657 individuals with self-reported GERD. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to assess the association between GERD and prevalent KSD. In addition, a prospective longitudinal cohort of 27,024 participants without KSD at baseline was followed for an average of 47 months to evaluate incident KSD using Cox proportional hazards models. In the cross-sectional analysis, the prevalence of kidney stones was higher among participants with GERD (9%) compared with those without GERD (6%). GERD was associated with prevalent KSD after multivariable adjustment (adjusted odds ratio, 1.57; 95% CI, 1.48–1.67). In the longitudinal cohort, GERD was also associated with an increased risk of incident KSD during follow-up (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.54; 95% CI, 1.22–1.93). GERD was associated with both prevalent and incident KSD in this population. These findings highlight the potential importance of recognizing and managing GERD to reduce KSD risk.