Kidney stones: symptoms, treatment and prevention
Why stones form, how they’re treated without surgery, and how much water it takes to keep them away.
Kidney stones are hard lumps of mineral that form in the kidney. Small ones pass on their own. Larger ones can block the flow of urine and cause some of the worst pain people ever feel.
Symptoms
- Severe pain in your side or back, below the ribs, that comes in waves
- Pain that moves towards the lower belly and groin
- Pink, red or brown urine
- Feeling sick or vomiting
- Needing to pass urine often, or a burning feeling when you do
How stones are treated
Most small stones pass within a few weeks with plenty of fluid and pain relief. Your doctor may prescribe medicine to relax the ureter and help the stone along.
Stones that are too big to pass, or that block the kidney, need to be broken up or removed. Shockwave lithotripsy uses focused sound waves from outside the body to shatter the stone into fragments that pass in the urine. There are no cuts, and most people go home the same day. Other options include passing a fine telescope up to the stone to laser it.
Keeping stones away
- Drink enough that your urine is pale, about two to three litres of fluid a day, and more when you’re working outdoors or sweating heavily.
- Cut back on salt.
- Keep portions of meat, chicken and fish moderate.
- Don’t cut out calcium from food. Calcium in meals helps prevent the most common kind of stone.
- If you’ve had more than one stone, ask your urologist about tests to find out why.