Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy
All shock wave lithotripsy machines deliver shock waves through the skin to the stone in the kidney. Most but not all of the energy from the shock wave is delivered to the stone.
Stone size is the greatest predictor of ESWL success. Generally:
- stones less than 10 mm in size can be successfully treated
- for stones 10 to 20 mm in size, additional factors such as stone composition and stone location should be considered
- stones larger than 20 mm are usually not successfully treated with ESWL.
Stones in the lower third of the kidney can also be problematic because, after fragmentation, the stone fragments may not be cleared from the kidney. Due to gravity, these fragments dont pass out of the kidney as easily as fragments from the middle and upper thirds of the kidney.
Obesity also influences whether ESWL treatment will be successful. The urologist will calculate the skin-to-stone distance to help determine whether this treatment is likely to be effective.
The possible complications of ESWL include:
Prevention Of Future Stones
Once your health care provider finds out why you are forming stones, he or she will give you tips on how to prevent them. This may include changing your diet and taking certain medications. There is no “one-size-fits-all” diet for preventing kidney stones. Everyone is different. Your diet may not be causing your stones to form. But there are dietary changes that you can make to stop stones from continuing to form.
Diet Changes
Drink enough fluids each day.
If you are not producing enough urine, your health care provider will recommend you drink at least 3 liters of liquid each day. This equals about 3 quarts . This is a great way to lower your risk of forming new stones. Remember to drink more to replace fluids lost when you sweat from exercise or in hot weather. All fluids count toward your fluid intake. But it’s best to drink mostly no-calorie or low-calorie drinks. This may mean limiting sugar-sweetened or alcoholic drinks.
Knowing how much you drink during the day can help you understand how much you need to drink to produce 2.5 liters of urine. Use a household measuring cup to measure how much liquid you drink for a day or two. Drink from bottles or cans with the fluid ounces listed on the label. Keep a log, and add up the ounces at the end of the day or 24-hour period. Use this total to be sure you are reaching your daily target urine amount of at least 85 ounces of urine daily.
Reduce the amount of salt in your diet.
Eat the recommended amount of calcium.
Favorite Kidney Stone Blogs
CareBlog is the blog of the Urology Care Foundation, an organization dedicated to supporting urologic research and providing urologic health information to the public. The blog features information on kidney stones, as well as information on general urologic health .
Want to hear about kidney stones from people whove gone through the experience? Let this website, which was founded by Mike M. Nguyen, MD, MPH, an associate professor of urology at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, be your guide. You can read through essential information from experts, as well as patient accounts and contributor articles that answer questions you may be wondering about, such as: Do vegetarians get kidney stones? and Does drinking a lot of water help a stone pass faster?
With additional reporting by Lauren Bedosky.
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How To Get Relief From Kidney Stone Pain
When pain does occur, it can be so severe that many patients have to go to the closest emergency room to seek immediate treatment. ;Often a single dose of pain medication given by an ER doctor is enough to alleviate the pain for a prolonged period of time, allowing the stone to pass, says Lieske.
While narcotic pain medications can be carefully given for this purpose, studies suggest that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs milder pain medications with fewer side effects can be as effective. A review of 36 clinical trials that compared NSAIDs with stronger pain medications for kidney stone pain relief found that NSAIDs were equivalent when it came to pain reduction and led to fewer side effects. 30977-6/fulltextâ rel=ânofollowâ>7)
Tamsulosin is also widely used to help relax the muscles of the ureter, increasing the chance of passing the stone and helping reduce symptoms of pain, Bechis notes. However, new evidence suggests this medication may not add as much benefit as previously thought, he adds. A study published in July 2015 in the;Lancet found that tamsulosin didnt help stones pass. 60933-3/fulltextâ rel=ânofollowâ>8)
How long does kidney stone pain last? It depends on how long it takes to pass the stone.
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When To Visit A Doctor
Visit your doctor immediately if you experience any of the following:
- Unbearable pain in your side, groin, abdomen or genitals
- Blood in your urine
- A urinary tract infection accompanied by severe pain or burning sensation while urinating
- Severe nausea or vomiting
- Fever and chills
To avoid further complications, we recommended you get treatment as soon as you notice the onset of the stones. Most of us become careless when it comes to a healthy diet and lifestyle, putting ourselves at a great risk of developing several health conditions. Kidney stones can make our life difficult, and hence, need to be addressed immediately. Go ahead and start using the knowledge you have gained to treat them. Also, dont forget to share this article with your near and dear ones you will be helping them as well.
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Signs And Symptoms Of Kidney Stones
Pain is a classic symptom of kidney stones, says;Prakash N. Maniam, MD, a urologist at Oviedo Medical Center in Oviedo, Florida. The pain is usually sharp and felt along the sides of the torso. It may radiate around to the abdomen and into the groin area as the stone moves through the urinary tract system, he says.
As the stone moves along the tract, it can block the natural flow of urine, which causes the kidney to swell, Dr. Maniam explains. The swelling activates nerves, which sends signals that are interpreted by the brain as an intense visceral pain, he says.
More than half a million people go to the emergency room because of kidney stones every year.
In addition to pain, blood in the urine and a burning sensation during urination are other common symptoms of kidney stones, says Maalouf. Sometimes with severe pain, patients develop nausea and vomiting, he adds.
If stone pain and fever develop, go directly to the ER, advises;Timothy F. Lesser, MD, a urologist at Torrance Memorial Medical Center in Torrance, California. Fever is a sign of infection. Notably, a kidney stone with a urinary tract infection may cause;; and must be treated immediately.
Other symptoms of a kidney stone can include frequent urination, a strong need to urinate, what looks like gravel in the urine, urine that smells bad, and cloudy urine.
What To Expect At Home
You visited your provider or the hospital because you have a kidney stone. You will need to take self-care steps. Which steps you take depend on the type of stone you have, but they may include:
- Drinking extra water and other liquids
- Eating more of some foods and cutting back on other foods
- Taking medicines to help prevent stones
- Taking medicines to help you pass a stone
You may be asked to try to catch your kidney stone. You can do this by collecting all of your urine and straining it. Your provider will tell you how to do this.
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How Long Does It Take A Kidney Stone To Form
You can have kidney stones for years without knowing theyre there. As long as these stones stay in place within your kidney, you wont feel anything. Pain from a kidney stone typically starts when it moves out of your kidney. Sometimes, a stone can form more quickly within a few months.
Talk with your healthcare provider about your risk factors. They might do a 24-hour urine test to check how quickly you develop stones.
Other Ways To Prevent Kidney Stones:
- Drink plenty of fluids to produce enough urine and to dilute the concentration of acid.
- Follow a diet low in oxalate, which is present in certain foods like spinach as well as vitamin C supplements.
- Take certain medications like potassium citrate that help break down and remove the material that is causing the stone.
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Who Is At Risk For Kidney Stones
Anyone may develop a kidney stone, but people with certain diseases and conditions or those who are taking certain medications are more susceptible to their development. Urinary tract stones are more common in men than in women. Most urinary stones develop in people 20 to 49 years of age, and those who are prone to multiple attacks of kidney stones usually develop their first stones during the second or third decade of life. People who have already had more than one kidney stone are prone to developing further stones.
In residents of industrialized countries, kidney stones are more common than stones in the bladder. The opposite is true for residents of developing areas of the world, where bladder stones are the most common. This difference is believed to be related to dietary factors. People who live in the southern or southwestern regions of the U.S. have a higher rate of kidney stone formation, possibly due to inadequate water intake leading to dehydration than those living in other areas. Over the last few decades, the percentage of people with kidney stones in the U.S. has been increasing, most likely related to the obesity epidemic.
A family history of kidney stones is also a risk factor for developing kidney stones. Kidney stones are more common in Asians and Caucasians than in Native Americans, Africans, or African Americans.
Uric acid kidney stones are more common in people with chronically elevated uric acid levels in their blood .
Causes And Risk Factors Of Kidney Stones
Some people are more likely to develop kidney stones than others. For example, men are more likely to have kidney stones than women, as are people with a family history of kidney stones, those with a history of UTIs, and those who have had kidney stones once before.
Youre also more likely to develop kidney stones if you take certain medications, including: diuretics, calcium-based antacids , topiramate , and indinavir . Calcium and vitamin C supplements may also increase your risk of forming kidney stones.
And while medical conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity can increase the risk of kidney stones, healthy people can also develop them, says;Anil Agarwal, MD, professor of internal medicine and director of interventional nephrology at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus.
Factors that may contribute to the formation of kidney stones include:
- Not drinking enough water
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What Are The Most Common Types Of Kidney Stones
The most common type of kidney stone is a calcium oxalate stone. This type happens when calcium and oxalate combine in your urine. It can happen when you have high quantities of oxalate, low amounts of calcium and arent drinking enough fluids.
Stones caused by uric acid are also fairly common. These come from a natural substance called purine, which is a byproduct of animal proteins .
What You Can Do About It
Firstly, you need to get a proper diagnosis in order to find out the size of kidney stone. Timely diagnosis is important because stones in kidney can cause serious damage to kidneys and may even damage them. Following are some tips that can help you ger rid of them:
1. Have kidney beans: Kidney beans can help in breaking down kidney stones. Boil soaked kidney beans with some hing or asafoetida. Fibre in kidney beans can help in flushing out kidney stones. Have it at least once a day to manage stones in the kidney.
2. Apple cider vinegar: ACV breaks down into acetic acid in the body, which can break down into a stone that is formed by calcium oxalate and other minerals. Have 1 tbsp of ACV 30 minutes before lunch and dinner can help in breaking down kidney stones and ease their passage.
Also read:;Got Kidney Stone? Try Apple Cider Vinegar: Here’s How It Works
3. Dried basil leaves: Boil 1 tbsp of dried basil leaves in water to make a tea. Have this tea thrice a day. It breaks down into acetic acid and helps you to break down kidney stone.
4. Drink sufficient water: Being dehydrated can lead to formation of kidney stones. Make sure you drink sufficient water to prevent and treat stones.
5. Pomegranate juice: Drink it regularly and can helpin flushing out kidney stones.
6. Dandelion root: This acts as a diuretic, which can be beneficial in breaking down and flushing out small-sized stones in kidneys.
7. Celery juice: Drink regularly to naturally flush out stones.
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How Do You Dissolve Kidney Stones And Get Them To Pass
So you have one or more kidney stones lodged in the kidney and want to dissolve and flush them out fast?;Youll need a higher dose than the normal maintenance dosing. Many sufferers find they can fix the problem with pure chanca piedra and water.
Heres how to dissolve kidney stones:
The name, Chanca Piedra itself translates literally to Stone Breaker. Scientists and doctors globally have praised the use of this herbal remedy in the treatment of kidney stones. The analgesic compounds in lab grade Chanca Piedra help ease pain while passing stones and reduce those stones in size so the particles can pass through your urine stream easily. In addition, lab grade Chanca Piedra acts as ;a defense system, so to speak, to reduce reoccurrence of kidney stones. This effect is due to the herbal remedys reduction of the very minerals that build in up in the kidneys to produce kidney stones excess oxalate, phosphorous, and magnesium. You could spend days drinking olive oil, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, large amounts of Coke, and asparagus puree, with limited success, if any. We find far superior and consistent results from kidney stone sufferers who took lab grade Chanca Piedra, and the science backs those real world findings.
Things That Can Help You Take A Pass On Kidney Stones
- By Matthew Solan, Executive Editor, Harvard Men’s Health Watch
If youve ever passed a kidney stone, you probably would not wish it on your worst enemy, and youll do anything to avoid it again. “Kidney stones are more common in men than in women, and in about half of people who have had one, kidney stones strike again within 10 to 15 years without preventive measures,” says Dr. Brian Eisner, co-director of the Kidney Stone Program at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital.
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What Are Kidney Stones Symptoms Causes Diagnosis Treatment And Prevention
Kidney stones are common; if you havent had a kidney stone, you likely know someone who has. Kidney stones affect 1 in 11 people in the United States. Overall, about 19 percent of men and 9 percent of women in the United States will develop a kidney stone by the time they are 70 years old.
Kidney stones are hard, rock-like deposits that form in the kidneys, two organs that filter waste and extra fluid from the body. Kidney stones typically develop when there is too much waste and not enough fluid in the kidneys.
Passing a stone the process of the stone moving out of the kidney and into and through the ureter can be excruciating. Some women say the pain is worse than childbirth, says;Naim Maalouf, MD, an associate professor of internal medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.
Your bodys waste can include minerals and other substances that combine to form stones, ranging in size from a grain of sand to the size of a pea, or even as large as a golf ball.
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What Are The Treatments For Kidney Stones
The treatment for a kidney stone depends on the size of the stone, what it is made of, whether it is causing pain and whether it is blocking your urinary tract. To answer these questions and to figure out the right treatment for you, your doctor might ask you to have a urine test, blood test, x-ray and/or CT scan. A CT scan sometimes uses contrast dye. If you have ever had a problem with contrast dye, be sure to tell your doctor about it before you have your CT scan.
If your test results show that your kidney stone is small, your doctor may tell you to take pain medicine and drink plenty of fluids to help push the stone through your urinary tract. If your kidney stone is large, or if it is blocking your urinary tract, additional treatment may be necessary.
One treatment option is shock wave lithotripsy. This treatment uses shock waves to break up the kidney stones into small pieces. After the treatment, the small pieces of the kidney stone will pass through your urinary tract and out of your body with your urine. This treatment usually takes 45 minutes to one hour and may be done under general anesthesia, which means you will be asleep and unable to feel pain.
In rare cases, a surgery called percutaneous nephrolithotomy is needed to remove a kidney stone. During the surgery, a tube will be inserted directly into your kidney to remove the stone. You will need to be in the hospital for two to three days to have and recover from this treatment.