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Can Kidney Stones Affect Fertility

What To Expect During An Evaluation

The Most PAINFUL Thing a Human Can Experience?? | Kidney Stones

History and physical exam

A mans evaluation begins with a thorough reproductive, medical and surgical history. Important components of this history include: 1) duration of infertility, coital timing and frequency, and sexual health 2) prior paternity or fertility treatments 3) childhood illnesses and development 4) medical illnesses, prior infections, and medications 5) prior surgeries or traumas and 6) exposure to potential gonadal toxins, such as heat, radiation, chemical solvents or pesticides.

A thorough physical exam includes assessment of body habitus, hair distribution, breast development and the external genitalia. Specific attention is given to the size and consistency of the testicles as well as the structures within the spermatic cords: the vasa deferentia and possible varicoceles.

Semen studies

Table 1. WHO Semen Analysis Reference Values

Ejaculate volume

> 30% normal WHO 1992

> 14% normal Kruger Strict

Specialized tests can be performed on semen and may be recommended by your physician under certain circumstances. These tests include assessment of leukocytes, anti-sperm antibodies, reactive oxygen species, and sperm DNA integrity. If the ejaculate volume is low, a post-ejaculate urinalysis should be performed to evaluate for retrograde ejaculation.

Endocrine evaluation

Ultrasonography

Genetic testing

Are There Medications To Prevent The Formation Of Kidney Stones

Occasionally, our doctors prescribe allopurinol to decrease the amount of uric acid produced by the body, in order to prevent the formation of kidney stones. This medication can be particularly useful for people who have gout or a diet high in animal protein.

In initial studies of patients taking these medications or placebo , those on the medications were 1.45 times more likely to successfully pass their stone. They also required less pain medication and passed their stones more quickly with fewer return trips to the hospital than patients taking placebo.

Thiazide Diuretics. Your doctor may prescribe a thiazide diuretic, which can reduce the amount of calcium released into the urine. These include hydrochlorothiazide, chlorthalidone, or indapamide, all of which help to prevent kidney stones from returning, especially in people who have high levels of calcium in the urine.

Signs You Might Have Kidney Stones

Kidney stones can cause severe pain in your back or your abdomen, especially if they are large. You might not begin to experience pain until the stones begin moving out of your kidneys and into your ureters.

You might also develop other symptoms that are common with kidney stones, including:

  • Fever
  • Blood in urine
  • Foul-smelling urine

Kidney stones can also cause you to feel a frequent need to urinate, but you might only produce small amounts of urine at a time.

In some cases, the stones are too small to cause symptoms, even as they pass through your urinary tract. However, if you experience any symptoms of kidney stones, schedule a diagnostic evaluation with our team at Urology Specialist Group.

We offer onsite testing services, including blood testing and urinalysis, to confirm your issues relate to kidney stones and not another condition.

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Menstrual Cycle And Kidney Disease

If a woman has Chronic Kidney Disease, there is an increased chance of having an irregular menstrual cycle, over time. Furthermore, once she begins to be on dialysis, her periods might even stop altogether and as there is a reduction in the functioning of kidneys even below 20 percent of its normal functioning, a woman becomes less likely to conceive because dialysis does not perform all the functions of kidneys. Can kidney problems affect menstrual cycle?

As the body retains an increased level of waste products than it would with normal kidney functions, it prevents the production of eggs and adversely affects menstruation. Karma Ayurveda Feedback, Complaint and Reviews

Erythropoietin Treatments, which is basically ascribed to improve the hormone levels and the treatment of anemia causes women on dialysis to get back their periods again. Thus, erythropoietin treatments increase fertility and women who are sexually active and does not want to become pregnant, should use birth control.

Some Quick Tips On Things To Improve Male Fertility:

Can Uterine Fibroids Affect Your Fertility?
  • Let the feel-good hormones flow When you work out, it releases the tension from the body and stimulates the blood circulation. This also enables the body to release endorphins that are feel good factors to elevate your mood and health.
  • Get proper and healthy sleep- A healthy 8-hour sleep can go a long way in relieving your stress and tension. Healthy sleep is also essential for the optimal functioning of the reproductive system and boosts the production of healthier sperms.
  • Get enough antioxidants- Make sure that your routine diet contains a lot of antioxidant-rich foods. Antioxidants help fight off the oxidative stress and protect the sperms from oxidative damage, thereby keeping a lot of fertility issues at bay.
  • Eat lycopene-rich foodsTomatoes, watermelon, pink grapefruit are loaded with lycopene. Lycopene readily helps in producing good quality sperms in the body and prevents the chances of azoospermia .
  • Zinc-rich foods to improve fertile health- Whole grains, chickpeas, and nuts are the excellent natural sources of zinc. Zinc is necessary for the optimum levels of testosterone and healthy sperm production in the male body.

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Foods Rich In Vitamin C

There are a few foods that are rich in vitamin C including:

  • Oranges
  • Strawberries
  • Mangoes

Getting the vitamin C from natural sources is more recommended than taking actual vitamin supplements. However, the amount of vitamin C in each food should be considered to make sure the patient gets enough vitamin C.

Can Kidney Stones Cause Infertility

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Urinary Reconstruction And Diversion After Cystectomy

Often bladder cancer can require complete bladder removal, and for men, usually means the prostate as well.

For women this can mean removing the bladder plus the uterus, fallopian tubes, ovaries and top of the vaginal wall. When the bladder is removed, the surgeon must reconstruct the bladder so that the urine can pass from the kidney out of the body. The kidneys which make the urine, the ureters which pass the urine to the bladder, and urethra which passes the urine out of the body are all still in place. There is no known artificial bladder has yet, the surgeon must create one one from intestine. Please See the Bladder cancer treatment page for more information.

Dairy Products With High

Can appendicitis & kidney stones affect pregnancy? – Dr. Ambika V

Dairy products are usually considered to be very beneficial, however recent studies have revealed that high-fat dairy products like cheese and full-cream milk can negatively impact the male reproductive system. These can significantly decrease sperm motility and sperm count. Also, full-fat dairy products may also contain residues of medicines given to the cows, which may further affect the functioning of the reproductive system.

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Tips For Preventing Kidney Stones

Even though March is National Kidney Health Awareness month, were always glad to take time to observe that here at Dr. Eric Seamans urology practice in Millburn, New Jersey. Our attention is focused on your kidney health year-round.

Kidney stones are hard mineral deposits that form inside your kidneys and can eventually make their way down into other parts of your urinary system, including your ureters, bladder, and urethra. The severe pain often associated with kidney stones occurs when these small clumps of mineral deposits are forced through even smaller spaces through which your urine flows as it exits your body.

Dr. Seaman values the opportunity to provide effective treatment for kidney stones and the symptoms they cause. Hes also passionate about helping you prevent kidney stones from recurring or forming in the first place. Here are five practical steps you can take to help prevent kidney stones

Can A Sugar Pill Help You Pass A Kidney Stone

In initial studies of patients taking these medications or placebo , those on the medications were 1.45 times more likely to successfully pass their stone. They also required less pain medication and passed their stones more quickly with fewer return trips to the hospital than patients taking placebo.

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Ways Your Diet Can Help Prevent Kidney Stones

So you want to avoid being the one in 12 women who will get kidney stones in their lifetime, what should you do?

  • Avoid a high-salt diet, processed foods, canned foods, cheeses, bottled salad dressings, high-salt snack foods and baked goods. Avoiding these are all part of a healthy diet anyway and the rise of these foods in our diet has been associated with the obesity epidemic.
  • Eat your fiber, eat your fruits and veggies without salt.
  • Make sure you drink enough water. Getting dehydrated or lower fluid intake is a risk for stone formation.
  • The calcium story is mixed. Some studies suggest that increased calcium increases the risk, some show that it doesn’t. Don’t restrict your calcium but don’t get too much because some sources of calcium like cheese are high in sodium.
  • Maintain a healthy weight. Obesity is a risk but maybe it’s the foods that are associated with obesity that we already mentioned.
  • If you’ve had a stone, talk to your doctor about what kind of stone you made. What minerals were the crystals made of and what should you do to decrease your risk of recurrence. In the interest of full disclosure and as I am disclosing it, isn’t a HIPAA violation. I’m a middle-aged, chubby, pizza-loving woman who is one of the one in 12. And having a kidney stone certainly got my attention, I was very impressed.

    Can Kidney Stones Affect Your Psa Count

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    No. Prostate-specific antigen is a protein produced by cells in the prostate gland. A PSA test is performed through a simple blood draw and shows the PSA level in a mans blood stream. Men who have prostate cancer often have an elevated PSA level. There are conditions that can result in high PSA levels that are not related to cancer. These include prostatitis and benign prostatic hyperplasia .

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    Chronic Or Untreated Infections

    Untreated sexually transmitted diseases can jeopardize your fertility in a variety of ways. For example, gonorrhea and chlamydia can trigger pelvic inflammatory disease, which can cause scarring in your fallopian tubes. Having syphilis increases your chances of stillbirth.

    Further, the human papillomavirus most commonly associated with an increased risk of cervical cancer can also change the quality or amount of your cervical mucus, making it more difficult to become pregnant.

    Clinical Observer In Male Fertility

    Short-term training in male infertility is available at Cleveland Clinics Glickman Urological & Kidney Institute for candidates who have completed their urology residency. Foreign graduates are welcome to apply.

    An observer will have the opportunity to observe the clinical evaluation and surgical treatment of the infertile male. Additional didactic opportunities include participation in various research conferences, journal clubs and observing ongoing research.

    Training Objectives:

    • Candidates will observe clinical and surgical cases in male infertility with Sarah Vij, MD and interact with other members of faculty interested in men’s health.

    An observer will:

    • Learn about emerging surgeries for the correction of anatomic causes of male factor infertility
    • Understand the role of new assisted reproductive techniques in the management of infertility
    • Compare various techniques for harvest of sperm in non-obstructive azoospermia

    How to apply:

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    Disadvantages Of Vitamin C For Fertility

    Vitamin C can be taken in excess and can lead to diarrhea and the formation of kidney and bladder stones, but it may also affect fertility. Excess vitamin C in women causes the thickening of cervical mucus, which will hinder the sperm from getting to the uterus. Typically, a woman has to take over 1000 mg per day for the cervical mucus to get thicker. In men, the excess of vitamin C doesnt affect fertility.

    What Can I Expect After Treatment

    Diet Tips to Prevent Calcium Oxalate Kidney Stones

    Male infertility can often be fixed with an outpatient procedure. These are done under general anesthesia or IV sedation. Semen should be tested about every 3 months for at least a year, or until pregnancy.

    The chance for pregnancy after vasectomy reversal depends on many things. It mostly depends on the age and fertility of your female partner. The number of years between your vasectomy and reversal also affects success. The longer you wait, the less likely the reversal will be a success.

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    What Causes Male Infertility

    Infertility is a common problem and may affect up to 15% of all couples: it is also on the increase as more people are delaying the start of their families. Infertility had been traditionally thought of as a primarily female problem urologists now realize that male infertility may also be involved in half of all infertility cases.

    The Optimal Amount Of Vitamin C

    Typically, between 500 and 1000 mg of vitamin C is sufficient both for male and female patients. The vitamin labels should be closely inspected to make sure this daily dose is not exceeded. A fertility doctor may recommend a higher dose, depending on each patients condition in part. If the patient has a history of kidney stones, the dose should be slightly lower.

    Vitamin C should be taken together with other supplements that boost fertility . A severe deficiency of vitamin C can lead to scurvy, which is a rare disease that is mostly present in the 3rd world countries today.

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    Risks Of Chronic Kidney Disease

    The risks have many effects including severe high blood pressure, protein losses in the urine, and worsening of CKD in the mother as well as prematurity and low birth weight in the baby. The new-born child may develop future kidney problems because of all these conditions.

    Advanced knowledge has helped in better understanding of pregnancy and kidney disease and there have been improvements in the outcomes of pregnancies among patients with ESKD. To achieve this improvement consistently, access to pre-conception primary care to detect baseline kidney problems and access to good prenatal and antenatal care is important.

    Reducing Pain And Swelling

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    In a clinical study of 33 people with nerve damage caused by diabetes , chanca piedra decreased pain and the sensation of numbness, tingling, and in the legs .

    According to studies in mice and rats, it blocks pain signals and swelling indirectly: by lowering inflammatory compounds that build up around nerves .

    Again, only one clinical trial and a few animal studies have investigated the potential benefits of chanca piedra in pain and swelling. Further clinical research is required.

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    Are You At Risk For Infertility

    If youve been having problems with conceiving children, youre far from alone. In the U.S., 1 in 8 couples deal with problems trying to have children. After a year of not being able to conceive this is referred to as infertility, and it can happen for a variety of reasons in both men and women. Infertility can be frustrating, but in many cases effective treatments are available to help people have children. So, what increases the risks for becoming infertile, and what can be done to reduce the risk? What conditions can cause infertility? Lets explore the causes and risks of infertility, and how it can be treated.

    If you live in the Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, or Greater South Florida areas and you have problems with having children, Drs. Craig Herman, Steven Kester, and the Urology Center of Florida can help with many of the conditions that can lead to infertility.

    Factors That Increase Your Risk Of Kidney Stones

    Kidney stones often have no single cause, and several factors may increase your risk for getting them. Some of these factors are listed below. They include:

    Lack of water

    You need to make enough pee to dilute the things that can turn into stones. If you donât drink enough or sweat too much, your pee may look dark. It should be pale yellow or clear.

    If youâve had a stone before, you should make about 8 cups of urine a day. So aim to down about 10 cups of water daily, since you lose some fluids through sweat and breathing. Swap a glass of water for a citrus drink. The citrate in lemonade or orange juice can block stones from forming.

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    How Temperature Can Affect Sperm Production

    The testicles reside in the scrotum and are maintained about two degrees cooler than core body temperature. When its hot, the scrotum relaxes and the testicles settle lower, and, as all men know, when its cold, they rise up and are held close to the body. If testicular temperature is maintained above a desirable level, for a prolonged period, it can impair sperm production not just the quantity, but also the quality. Prolonged, repeated visits, to the hot tub, for example may be relaxing, but may work against your reproductive health.

    In a report from the 2007 International Brazilian Journal of Urology, men who repeatedly subjected their testicles to prolonged immersion in hot water through hot tubs, were found to have an impairment of sperm production in terms of count, and motility. Furthermore, after cessation of prolonged heat exposure, several patients were found to have improvement in their semen analysis.

    Fever can be considered another source of heat. Prolonged fever or illness is associated with an impairment in male fertility. Even after recovery, it may take a few months for sperm quality to return to normal. Systemic illness such as poorly controlled diabetes can also contribute to fertility issues.

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