A Case of Kidney Stones

About 10 million (7-21) people are diagnosed with kidney stones each year. The most likely risk are males in their 40's and in later ages as 70's than females but females have the highest calcium intake who develop kidney stones, and for another fact, Caucasian people are prone to kidney stones than black people. It's a common problem that is a serious effect towards the kidneys that are by far the most excessive painful urinary disorders that has the capability to cause damage to the kidneys and leaves the person to suffer a great deal.

Kidneys
Kidneys look like two bean-shaped organs that are located in the middle of the back and below the rib cage. Kidneys hold about 200 quarts of blood and filters out waste products, water, and bad substances that flows to the bladder and out of the ureters comes the urine. The waste in your blood is a breakdown of active muscle and from eating food. As it turns into waste, it is then sent to the blood. If kidneys don't remove the waste, it's another more reason to suffer kidney damage.

Kidney Stones
Kidney stones known as calculi are like hardened mineral deposits and start as a microscopic small particles that develop into stones that are even sometimes large, and the colors are usually yellow or brown. The stones are also a hard mass developed by crystals that separate from the urine and build up on the inner surfaces of the kidney. The urine contains chemicals that prevent or break the crystals from forming. Small crystals make its way through the urinary tract by passing out of the body in the urine without being noticed. Kidney stones contain a combination of chemicals with oxalate or phosphate. These chemicals are part of a person's normal diet. A struvite stone causes infection in the urinary tract and are often found in women that develop large jagged stone "staghorns."

Stones develop a metabolic condition whereas unable to keep the urinary waste from clumping together. The stone has created serious harm to the kidneys and once it's forced to push out, the more pressure put on the more it can really hurt. For everytime the blood empties toxins in the kidneys it filters blood carrying toxins that dissolves the waste and quickly moves it out of the urine and begins forming solid blockages.

Lodged stones can cause a great deal of pain, a stone lodged in the tube carries the urine from the kidney to the bladder and causes the back to suffer sever pain and can affect the ureter and kidney increase of pressure.

Kidney Stone Formation
There are many factors as to why kidney stones can make formation. Part of the problem could be metabolic inclination that forms the stones, if the kidneys are constantly have to maintain mineral balance in the urine. If the kidney does not function to keep the minerals dissolved in the urine it begins to form clumps and intake more minerals. Every passing stone comes in contact with urine only collects more minerals on its outer surface.

Dehydration can cause high levels of substances that don't dissolve completely and form crystals that slowly build up into the kidney stones. Urine has a lot of contents such as citrate, magnesium, and pyrophosphate.

Check with your doctor, they request laboratory tests and blood test to go by the formation of the kidney stone. The doctor will ask questions about your medical history, occupation, and eating habits. The laboratory will test the stone that has either been removed or if passed, as well as urine.

Kidney Stone Symptoms
The sign of symptoms start with pain in the lower back or groin area from shape and size of the stone. Kidney stones can cause immediate danger to the kidneys and if large enough to get lodged in it causes sever irritation and damage when it's on its way passing out. Even the smallest stones (silent stones) are capable of causing damage and failure. People with kidney stones (stone sufferers) wait to pass it out on its own with the urine that may not cause such pain but leaves the kidneys severely damaged. When you feel the need to urinate you may feel discomfort and if you have already urinated, it leaves with a burning stinging and blood is found in the urine. By using treatment can disintegrate the stones back into the urine and normal function can regain back to its natural process.

Stones Causes Pain
It's a possibility that a stone can remain silent in the kidney without causing pain. However, a growing stone causes pressure and stress on the sensitive urinary tracts. An irregular or larger stone creates harmful damage by scraping the urinary lining. Waiting for the stone to pass only worsens the condition.

Stones Causes Kidney Damage
About 99% of tubules in the kidneys are less than 1mm wide, the smallest stone wide enough to get lodged in the urinary tracts with potential danger. Stones maneuver within the tubule just to get lodged again at a bend of narrow passage. In constant contact with the flowing urine makes it quickly access to an abundant supply of crystallizing minerals that help it grow.

Bypass Stones
Urine's contents can prevent crystal formation; a chemical composition has to be broken down. Struvite stone sufferers need to keep the urine free from bacteria that can cause infection. Antibiotics may be given if there's infection, blockage, or a risk of kidney damage.

Cut down on foods you usually eat with high levels of calcium such as dairy, leafy green vegetables, and oxalate foods such as chocolate, tea, rhubarb, or cooked spinach. Also, people suffer from uric acid stones from meat, fish, and poultry. Do limit on caffeine, tea, and cola.

Treatments and Diagnoses
The regular treatment of riding kidney stones are drinking 12 full glasses of water that can quickly move out the stone or taking necessary prescription medications such as allopurinol. You can drink other sweetened beverages such as ginger ale, lemon-lime, and fruit juices. A visit to the hospital, the doctor will ask that you urinate through a strainer to catch the stone to be tested. Doctors go by an X-ray or sonogram exam to see what the situation of the stone is and where it's located. They can also tell by the shape and size of the stone. If a large stone where to be lodged, it would take the cystoscope to be passed up through the ureter and bladder to catch the stone and remove it or the shock waves can shatter it.

Doctors do all sorts of diagnostics by asking the patient's what their symptoms are? They start evaluation to have the stone reveal its identity. Test such as blood test identifies the amounts of certain chemicals that are in relation to the formation of the stones. A urine test sample is collected from patients for a 24-hour analysis to see what chemicals is the reason of the stones. With X-ray intravenous, an injection of dye goes into the bloodstream, and shows up stones to be seen. Radiological and ultrasound imaging are also useful techniques to help the doctor see where and what about the stone and to what kind of situation it's causing.

The most frequent used procedure is the Extracorporeal Shock wave Lithotripsy (ESWL) is a formally known treatment for kidney stones, where the shock waves travels through the skin and body tissues until they hit the denser stones. The stones break down and pass through the urinary tract in the urine. Although, the shock waves may not cause pain, afterwards you feel discomfort after the procedure. A surgeon performing a general anesthetic makes a small cut to the back and a nephroscope, telescopic instrument pulls out the stone or breaks it into pieces using the shock waves.

Symptoms
Lower Back Pain\Aching on one or two sides
Urinary Discomfort
Severe Irritation
Nausea\Vomiting
Fever\Chills
Blood and Clout
Burning Urination

Causes
Alcohol
Alcoholic Behaviors (alcohol consumption and poor sleep)
Heredity or inheridate metabolic disorders (cystinuria, hyperoxaluria)
Rare Hereditary Disease (renal tubular acidosis)
Metabolic Disorders (hyperparathyroidism)
Kidney Disorders (cystic kidney disease)
Urinary Tract Infections
Diet
Drugs
Climate
Medical Conditions
Living Conditions
Someone with a family history of kidney stones
Having one kidney
Persons between the ages of 20 and 40
Taking certain medications (diuretics, antacids, thyroid)
High protein dieting and very low fiber
Dehydration
Poor activity
Persons with chrohn's disease
Chemotherapy
Inflammatory bowel disease
Over intake of vitamin D
Overactive parathyroid glands
Kidney diseases

Problems
Blood in the urine

Calcium Foods
Dairy
Green Vegetables

Oxalate Foods
Chocolate
Tea
Rhubarb
Cooked Spinach
Asparagus
Vegetables
Organ Meats
Liver
Kidney
Poultry
Fish

Risky Foods
Spinach
Chocolate
Peanuts
Fruits
Breads

Risky Drinks
Cocoa
Tomato Juice
Grapefruit Juice
Apple Juice
Soda
Tea
Wine
Orange Juice
Lemonade

Non-Risky Beverages
Water
Ginger Ale
Lemon-Lime Sodas
Fruit Juices

Four Types of Kidney Stones
Calcium
Struvite Stone
Auric Acid Stone
Cystine Stone

Risky Medications
Diuretics
Antacids
Crixivan

Treatment Operations
Shock Waves
Tunnel Surgery
Ureteroscope

High Level Substances
Calcium
Oxalate
Uric Acid
Cystine

Low Level Substances
Citrate
Magnesium

Diseases
Renal Tubular
Acidosis
Cystinuria

Disorders
Gout
Chronic Urinary Tract Infections
Hyperparathyroidism

Terms
Blood (hematuria)
Bacteria (bacteriuria)
Creatinine (kidney)
Electrolytes (dehydration)
Cell Count (neutrophilia)
Blood Levels (hypercalcaemia)

Definitions and Explanations

Recurrent Kidney Stones - form in patients who are sensitive to consumed amounts of meat.

Thiazides - diuretics; reduces high levels of urinary calcium; increases urinary volume.

Mucin - a substance that holds kidney stones together.

Medullary Sponge Kidney - a kidney defect that increases urinary calcium loss and stone formation.

Hyperparathyroidism - causes calcium loss.

Gout - uric acid in the blood.

Hypertension - high blood pressure.

Colitis - inflammation of the colon that causes symptoms.

Struvite Stone - forms an infection in the urinary system.

Auric Acid - is a stone that forms when there is too much acid in the urine and could also be a cause of a great amount of intake of meat.

Cystine - is a stone that is a building block that makes up muscles in the nervous system and can form in the urine.

Acetohydroxamic Acid - prevents infections that go into the stones.

Hydrochlorothiazide - decreases the amount of calcium that's extract from the kidney in the urine.

Sodium Cellulose Phosphate - joins the calcium in the intestines and keeps it from leaking into the urine.

Thiola and Cuprimine - helps reduce the number of cystine in the urine.

Calcium Oxalate - form stones in the individual's body who have a chronic inflammation of the bowel or intestinal, and anyone who has had an operating or surgery.

Renal Tubular Acidosis - a rare hereditary disease that develops kidney stones; occurs in people with metabolic or hormonal disorders; reduces urinary citrate; makes the kidneys unable to excrete acid; causes formation.

Hyperoxaluria - produces too much of the salt oxalate.

Struvite Stone - causes infection in the urinary tract.

Sodium - promotes calcium excretion.

Urolithiasis - stones forming in the urinary tract.

Ureterolithiasis - a kidney stone found in the ureter.

Ureters - narrow tubes that carry urine from the kidneys to the bladder.

Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy (PNL) - is an invasive and risky procedure that damages kidney tissue. (Caution: This is a longer procedure that has a chance of causing post-surgical infections).

Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy (ESWL) - a device to treat kidney stones by using high-powered energy sound waves that is aimed to the stone and disintegrates it. The procedure has to completely be performed several times until the stone is completely shattered.

Ureteroscopic Stone Removal - is where a tube is inserted up the urethra to capture the stone, the urologist then uses a laser to break the stone apart. (Caution: The procedure is extremely uncomfortable and causes punctured urinary tracts and tissue damage.)

Anti-Microbial - prevents bacteria from coming into the urinary system.

Anti-Inflammatories - keep urinary tracts from inflammation causes.

Litrhontiptic - urine that helps breakdown the stone's chemical composition.

Acetohydroxamic Acid - prevents infections that goes into the stones

Stent - is used through the bladder into the ureter to help fragments pass.

Nephroscope - a stone that is located in the kidney and is removed.

Allopurinol - reduces uric acid levels in the blood and urine; dissolves the uric acid stones.

Ammonia - a chemical produced by the bacteria that causes urinary tract infections that are often related to women.

Cystoscope - is a narrow instrument used when a stone is lodged in the ureter, the stone is caught and broken into tiny pieces with a shock wave.

Vitamin C Liquescence - increases the blood circulation and promotes tissue integrity within the kidney.

Renal Sarcode Endocrine - eliminates toxins and waste out of the kidneys; provides support; stimulates activity within the kidney; breaks down crystals and throws it out.

Refnograde Pyelogram - dye injected into the ureteral opening in the bladder.

Parathyroid Surgery - small tumor that occurs in the parathyroid.

Tunnel Surgery - a narrow tunnel through the skin to the stone inside the kidney when a cut is into the patient's back.