Your kidneys remove waste and fluid from your blood to make urine. Sometimes, when you have too much of certain wastes and not enough fluid in your blood, these wastes can build up and stick together in your kidneys. These clumps of waste are called kidney stones.

Anyone can get a kidney stone, but some people are more likely than others to have them. Men get kidney stones more often than women do. Kidney stones are also more common in non-Hispanic white people than in people of other ethnicities.

You may also be more likely to have kidney stones if:

• You have had kidney stones before.
• Someone in your family has had kidney stones.
• You don’t drink enough water.
• You follow a diet high in protein, sodium and/or sugar.
• You are overweight or obese.
• You have had gastric bypass surgery or another intestinal surgery.
• You have polycystic kidney disease or another cystic kidney disease.
• You have a certain condition that causes your urine to contain high levels of cysteine, oxalate, uric acid or calcium.

If you have a larger kidney stone, you may notice any of the following symptoms:

• Pain while urinating
• Blood in your urine
• Sharp pain in your back or lower abdomen
• Nausea and vomiting
• If you are having any of these symptoms, contact your health care provider.

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.

Another treatment option is ureteroscopy. This treatment is also done under general anesthesia. The doctor uses a long tool shaped like a tube to find and remove the stone or to find and break the stone into small pieces. If the stone is small, the doctor may be able to remove it. If it is large, it may need to be broken into pieces. In this case, a laser will be used to break the stone into pieces that are small enough to pass through your urinary tract.

Journal of Nephrology and Urology is an Open Access peer-reviewed publication that discusses current research and advancements in diagnosis and management of kidney disorders as well as related epidemiology, pathophysiology and molecular genetics.

To submit a new manuscript authors should use the online submission system. Authors may submit their manuscript via online tracking system https://www.imedpub.com/submissions/nephrology-urology.html or as an attachment to email:  nephrolurol@imedpubjournals.com

Regards
Mercy Eleanor
Editorial Assistant
Journal of Nephrology and Urology