Kidney Failure - Kidney Stone Question

Author

Kidney Stone Question

brett.bayne@gmail.com

2005-08-01, 6:01 pm

Last night at 7 p.m., I had very bad pain in my lower back and right
side. After a couple of hours, the pain diminished and felt pain in my
lower abdomen, and finally in my right testicle. I had begun drinking a
LOT of water, expecting this to be a kidney stone. At about 11 p.m., a
cup of my urine looked more like diet Pepsi. However, peeing was never
burning or hurting. After several hours, the urine turned cloudy and
eventually returned to looking yellow. All the pain has been gone since
late last night (it's 1:30 p.m. now). When I went to the doctor and
gave a urine sample, it was more clear than yellow, probably because
I've been drinking so much water.

Is it possible I passed the stone, or fragments of a stone, without
feeling it pass through while peeing? How likely is it that it's still
inside somewhere, and intense agony may still come? As I say, I have
had no problem urinating and no burning, so far. Also, what will the
urine/blood tests tell me about what happened or is happening?

I should add that while the back/side/abdomen pain was considerable, it
was nowhere near the "pain of childbirth" agony that I have read so
much about online.

Thanks!

Brett in L.A.

REP

2005-08-02, 8:58 am

In article <1122928933.940611.201650@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com>,
brett.bayne@gmail.com wrote:

> Last night at 7 p.m., I had very bad pain in my lower back and right
> side. After a couple of hours, the pain diminished and felt pain in my
> lower abdomen, and finally in my right testicle. I had begun drinking a
> LOT of water, expecting this to be a kidney stone. At about 11 p.m., a
> cup of my urine looked more like diet Pepsi. However, peeing was never
> burning or hurting. After several hours, the urine turned cloudy and
> eventually returned to looking yellow. All the pain has been gone since
> late last night (it's 1:30 p.m. now). When I went to the doctor and
> gave a urine sample, it was more clear than yellow, probably because
> I've been drinking so much water.
>
> Is it possible I passed the stone, or fragments of a stone, without
> feeling it pass through while peeing? How likely is it that it's still
> inside somewhere, and intense agony may still come? As I say, I have
> had no problem urinating and no burning, so far. Also, what will the
> urine/blood tests tell me about what happened or is happening?
>
> I should add that while the back/side/abdomen pain was considerable, it
> was nowhere near the "pain of childbirth" agony that I have read so
> much about online.

The "pain of childbirth" thing is overblown in my opinion, but I pass
stones just about every month. Not all stones cause agonizing pain; the
literature says some even pass without any pain but I find *that* hard
to believe as well. In my experience, the pain is bad, very bad - but
I've never gone to the ER over it, though I do take opiate painkillers
for it.

If you did not strain your urine you may have flushed your stone without
realizing it. Passing a stone does not cause burning or itching while
urinating; in fact, the passage through the urethra is the least painful
part of the whole process. The passage from the kidney through the
ureters is very painful, and causes what is called renal colic, and it
feels like spasms and/or back, side and abdominal pain. It's usually bad
enough to make me heave (again, anecdote is not the plural of data - I'm
just using me as an illustration).

While the stone is passing from the kidney through the ureters to the
bladder, bleeding may occur, causing the cola-colored urine. Dark urine
indicates bleeding higher up in the urinary tract; bright red blood
indicates bleeding lower in the tract, such as in the bladder or
urethra. In either case, you did the right thing in having it checked
out by a doctor.

A urine analysis won't tell a whole lot; it may show urinary pH, giving
a hint as to what kind of stone you might have passed (you really need
the stone for that, obviously); show if there's an infection present and
if there are crystals present. A more comprehensive test is called a
stone panel, and involves collecting all urine for 24 hours in a special
container with preservatives, which is then analyzed for calcium,
calcium oxalate, uric acid, citrates and other substances.

A sonogram, x-ray, IVP (intervenous pyelogram, an x-ray of the kidneys
and ureters with a special dye) and/or a CT can show if there is any
stone or stone fragments in your kidneys/ureters/bladder and where the
stone was in your kidney (well, a CT and IVP can). If you are not having
trouble urinating and have no signs of an infection, your doctor may
just order an xray to double-check that there is no obstruction.

If your stones are uric acid, there are a variety of drugs to help
prevent them. If they are calcium oxalate ... well, not so much, though
there are drugs to help raise urinary pH to discourage stone formation.
If it is due to idiopathic hypercalicuria, decreasing calcium intake
helps. If this is your first stone and don't have a recurrence right
away or an obstruction and your stone panel is normal, you might not
have to worry about this. Most people who have a stone will have another
at some point in their lives; stone formation like mine (monthly) is
quite rare so don't worry about that!

--
"Did Father shoot him? I will eat Grandfather for dinner."
- Helen Keller, on learning of the death of her grandfather

Brettster

2005-08-02, 11:53 am

Thank you so much for the information. I truly appreciate it!!!

Brett