Kidney & Bladder Stones

The bladder stones are hard masses of minerals in the bladder. They build up when the minerals in concentrated urine crystallize and form stones and this often happens if the person has trouble completely emptying your bladder. Small bladder stones can be passed without treatment, but sometimes bladder stones need medications or surgery. Left untreated, bladder stones may lead to infections and other complications.

Sometimes bladder stones irritate the bladder wall and also blocks the flow of urine, Here are the signs and symptoms may include:

1. Lower abdominal pain
2. Pain during urination
3. Frequent urination
4. Difficulty urinating or interrupted urine flow
5. Blood in the urine
6. Cloudy or unusually dark-colored urine

Drinking lots of water can help a small stone pass naturally. Most of the time, you'll need to have the stones removed. There are some ways to do this.

Breaking stones apart: In one method, you're first given with general and a small tube with a camera at the end is inserted into your bladder. After that, a laser, ultrasound or other device breaks the stone into small pieces and flushes them from the bladder.

Surgical removal: Occasionally, bladder stones are large or too hard to break up. In these cases, your doctor will surgically remove the stones from your bladder.

Kidney stones also called renal calculi, nephrolithiasis or urolithiasis, these are the hard deposits made of minerals and salts that form inside the kidneys.

Few causes for kidney stones formation are diet, excess body weight, some medical conditions, and certain supplements and medications. The kidney stones can affect any part of your urinary tract — from your kidneys to your bladder. Sometimes, these stones form when the urine becomes concentrated, allowing minerals to crystallize and stick together too.

A kidney stone usually will not cause symptoms until it moves around within your kidney or passes into your ureters. If it becomes lodged in the ureters, it may block the flow of urine and cause the kidney to swell and the ureter to spasm, which can be very painful. At that point, you may experience these signs and symptoms:

1. Severe, sharp pain in the side and back, below the ribs
2. Pain that radiates to the lower abdomen and groin
3. Pain that comes in waves and fluctuates in intensity
4. Pain or burning sensation while urinating
5. Pink, red or brown urine
6. Cloudy or foul-smelling urine
7. A persistent need to urinate, urinating more often than usual or urinating in small amounts
8. Nausea and vomiting
9. Fever and chills if an infection is present

There are different possible treatments, if a stone blocks urine flow and drainage of the kidney,. An option that your doctor may choose is:

1. Ureteral stenting or nephrostomy: A ureteral stent is a thin, flexible tube threaded into the ureter by a urologist to restore the flow of urine to the bladder from the kidney.
2. A nephrostomy is performed by an interventional radiologist when ureteral stenting is not possible or desirable. A tube is placed through the skin on the patient's back into the kidney and the tube is connected to an external drainage bag. The procedure is usually performed with fluoroscopy.