HEALTH: THE TERROR CALLED KIDNEY STONES

By Divine Leonard

Imagine waking up in the middle of the night with a sudden, sharp and unrelenting pain in your sides. You might think you need to use the toilet or it could be as a result of constipation. But on getting to the toilet, you experience a severe pain when urinating and see a pinkish red or brown colouration in your urine; and true to your horror, you discover it’s blood! This excruciating agony is usually one of the early indicators that a person might be experiencing kidney stones otherwise called Urolithiasis.

Kidney stones are tiny formidable formations that can turn a dreamless night into a nightmare. Kidney stones are clumps of crystals that form from minerals and other substances in your urinary tract. They are solid in nature and form as a result of minerals, acids, salts, etc, accumulating in your kidneys.It is sometimes unbelievable to think that the excruciating pain associated with kidney stones could be caused by something the size of a grain of sand. The larger stones could be around the size of a golf ball. Despite their small size, these stones when accumulated can cause chaos and disarray to the body system.

Due to the variation in sizes of these stones, it is possible for one to not even realise they have one. The smaller-sized stones can pass through the urinary tract with no symptoms.But it could be quite tricky when it comes to larger stones because they could get trapped in your ureter. Basically, your ureter helps to drain urine from your kidney down to your bladder, but when large stones get trapped in the ureter, this can cause urine to back up and limit your kidney’s ability to filter waste from your body

Kidney stones are of different types based on the type of crystals they’re made up of. The calcium-oxalate and calcium phosphate stones form as a result of eating food that have high-oxalate content or simply put, food low in calcium. Next is the Uric acid stones which are usually caused by consuming animal protein foods.The Struvite stones are caused by bacterial infections and repeated infections could lead to the formation of a large kidney stone which usually require surgical procedures to be removed. This is referred to as staghorn calculus. Cystine stones on the other hand are formed in people with a hereditary condition that causes the kidneys to excrete too much of certain amino acids.

Insufficient intake of fluids is one of the causes of kidney stones. This means that not taking enough fluids like water could result in the formation of kidney stones due to the concentration of the urine due to lack of fluid.

Consuming foods high in certain substances like oxalate, salt or protein is another factor that could cause the formation of kidney stones. Health conditions like Gout, High blood Pressure, Cystinuria, etc, can easily put you at a higher risk of getting kidney stones. A known family history of kidney stones can increase the risk of getting kidney stones as well.

Basically, kidney stones form when substances like calcium, uric acid etc become particles in your urine, they then start to stick together, forming crystals or stone and could accumulate over months or years. When kidney stones form, they block the ureter and this causes a sharp and severe pain in the side, back as well as the ribs. The pain usually moves to the lower abdomen or groin area. Urination is also very painful and there is usually a colouration of the urine due to the presence of blood. Other symptoms include frequent urination, nausea, fever, inability to urinate etc.

When this pain persists, it is important to go to the hospital, health care providers will examine you properly and they can do this with the aid of blood, urine or imaging tests. The urine test usually involves testing urine samples for blood or any sign of infection. The blood tests on the other hand help medical professionals check kidney function to detect infections and check for high calcium levels. The imaging tests consist mainly of the CT(Computed tomography) scans and X-rays. They help medical professionals see the size, shape and location of the stones.

As the popular quote “prevention is better than cure”, there are habits to imbibe in order to prevent kidney stones. Regular intake of water can not be overemphasised. The kidney functions optimally when the body is hydrated. The first step to keeping kidney stones away is to always be hydrated. The things you consume can impact your risk for kidney stones. Limit intake of animal proteins and foods high in calcium or oxalates like spinach, rhubarb, peanuts, etc.

The good news is Kidney stones can be treated as well. If you suspect you’re experiencing symptoms of kidney stones or you already have them, there are ways to manage and treat them. Medications can also be used to help with kidney stones. Common medications used for treating stones include tamsulosin, nifedipine etc. This will help relieve the pain and allow the kidney stones to dissolve on its own. But if the kidney stones persist, there are other surgical procedures that could be employed. These include lithotripsy, ureteroscopy, etc. Lithotripsy involves using shockwaves to break the stones apart from the outside of your body. It will enable the fragments to move through your urinary tract and out of your body more easily. Ureteroscopy on the other hand is a bit more painful. A scope is inserted through the urethra and bladder and into the Ureter. This will break up the stones and allow it to come out of the body more easily.

Kidney stones, as painful as they may be, is not a life sentence. When treated properly, one can still go about daily activities and live healthy. But remember, a healthy lifestyle would go a long way in keeping this terror away.

Kidney stones, as painful as they may be, is not a life sentence. When treated properly, one can still go about daily activities and live healthy. But remember, a healthy lifestyle would go a long way in keeping the terror of kidney stones away.