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Kidney stones (renal lithiasis) are small, hard deposits that form inside your kidneys. The stones are made of mineral and acid salts. Kidney stones have many causes and can affect any part of your urinary tract — from your kidneys to your bladder. Often, stones form when the urine becomes concentrated, allowing minerals to crystallize and stick together.
Your first diagnosis of kidney stones often occurs when you see your doctor or go to an emergency room because you are in great pain. Your doctor or an emergency medicine specialist will ask you questions and examine you. After you pass a stone, your doctor may give you another exam to find out whether you are likely to get kidney stones again.
Your doctor may do one or more of the following tests to help diagnose kidney stones, see where they are located, and find out if they are causing or may cause damage to the urinary tract.
• A noncontrast spiral computed tomography (CT) scan a preferred test for kidney stones. It is a special type of CT scan that moves in a circle.
• An ultrasound exam of the kidneys (ultrasonogram) is also a preferred test and it exposes the patient to less radiation than a CT scan.
• An intravenous pyelogram (IVP) is an X-ray test that shows pictures of the urinary tract, including any kidney stones.
• A retrograde pyelogram may be done if the IVP or CT scan does not provide a diagnosis.
• Urinalysis and urine cultures test your urine.
• An abdominal X-ray (KUB) gives a picture of the kidneys, the bladder, and the tubes that connect the kidneys to the bladder (ureters).
Finding out the type of your kidney stone will help with treatment decisions and measures to prevent stones from forming again. Tests you may have include:
• A medical history and physical exam.
• Stone analysis. Your doctor may ask you to collect stones by straining your urine through a fine-mesh strainer or fine gauze. He or she will then determine what type of stone it is.
• Blood chemistry screen, to measure kidney function, levels of calcium, uric acid, phosphorus, electrolytes, and other substances that may have caused the stone to form.
• Urine collection for 24 hours, to measure volume, pH, calcium, oxalate, uric acid, and other substances that may have caused the stone to form. This is a test you may do at home.
Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotrispy (ESWL) : Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) is the most common type of lithotripsy. “Extracorporeal” means outside the body.
High-energy shock waves, also called sound waves, will pass through your body until they hit the kidney stones. You may feel a tapping sensation when this starts. The waves break the stones into tiny pieces. Often, you will be given general anesthesia for the procedure. You will be asleep and pain-free.
Percutaneous Nephrostolithotomy (PCNL) : Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy, or PCNL, is a procedure for removing medium-sized or larger kidney stones from the patient’s urinary tract by means of a nephroscope passed into the kidney through a track created in the patient’s back.
Ureteroscopic Lithotrispy with Holmium Laser : This procedure is performed under Epidural and Spinal Anaesthesia to treat stones located in the middle and lower ureter. A small, fiberoptic instrument (ureteroscope) is passed into the ureter. Large stones are fragmented using 100-Watts Coherent Holmium Laser.
Note:- Cost Estimate of Treatment for Urinary Stones in India ,above include stay in a Private Room for specific number of days where a companion can stay with the patient, surgeon fee, medicines and consumables, nursing care and food for the patient. More accurate treatment cost estimates can be provided if medical reports are emailed to us or after the patient is examined by doctors after arrival in India and medical tests are done.
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