Kidney Stones

Kidney stones are one of the most painful of the urological disorders that has plagued humans for centuries. It's been part of our history for so long that even scientists have found evidence of kidney stones in a 7,000-year-old Egyptian mummies. Unfortunately, kidney stones are one of the most common disorders of the urinary tract. Each year, millions of people visits their health care providers, half of those people go to emergency rooms for kidney stone problems.

Most kidney stones pass out of the human body without any assistance by a physician. Stones that cause complications can be treated by various techniques, most of which do not involve major surgery. Research advances have come to a better understanding of the many causes for stone formation and therefore better treatments for preventing kidney stones.

A kidney stone is a hard mass developed from crystals that separate from the urine within the urinary tract. Normally, urine contains chemicals that prevent or control the crystals from forming. These substances do not seem to work for everyone,so some people form these stones. If the crystals remain tiny enough, they will travel through the urinary tract and pass out of the body in the urine without being noticed.

Kidney stones may contain various combinations of chemicals. The most common type of stone contains calcium. A less common type of stone is caused by infection in the urinary tract. An excess intake of vitamin D, urinary tract infections, and blockage of the urinary tract have lead to forming Kidney Stones. Certain diuretics, commonly called water pills, and calcium-based antacids may increase the risk of forming kidney stones by increasing the amount of calcium in the urine.

Kidney stones often do not cause any symptoms. Usually, the first symptom of a kidney stone is extreme pain, which suddenly starts when a stone moves in the urinary tract and blocks the flow of urine. Usually a person feels a sharp, cramping pain in the back and side in the area of the kidney or even in the lower abdomen. Sometimes people feel nauseous and vomiting can happen and pain may spread to the groin area.

If the stone is too large to pass easily through the pain continues as the muscles in the wall of the thin ureter try to push the stone into the bladder. As the stone moves and the body tries to push it out, blood may appear in the urine. As the stone moves down the ureter, closer to the bladder, a person may feel the need to urinate more often and even feel a burning sensation during urination. If fever and chills come with any of these symptoms, an infection may be present. In this type of case, a person should contact a doctor immediately.

Sometimes "silent"