Renal Stones

What are Renal(kidney) Stones (Lithiasis) ?

If you’ve ever passed a kidney stone, you’re not likely to forget the experience – it can be excruciatingly painful. Kidney stones often occur when urine becomes too concentrated. This causes minerals and other substances in your urine to form crystals on the inner surfaces of your kidneys. Over time these crystals may combine to form a small, hard mass. Sometimes this mass (stone) breaks off and passes into the ureter, one of the two thin tubes that carry urine from your kidneys to your bladder.

About 80 percent of stones are a combination of calcium and oxalate (oxalic acid), a substance found in many fruits, vegetables and grains. Most other stones are composed of uric acid, which is a byproduct of protein metabolism.

Not all kidney stones cause symptoms. In fact, it’s not unusual for stones to be discovered in the kidneys during X-rays for an unrelated problem. They may also be discovered when you seek medical care for blood in your urine, recurring urinary tract infections, or a vague pain or ache in your side – all common symptoms of kidney stones. It’s only when a stone breaks loose and begins to work its way down the ureter that the pain becomes agonizing.

What are the symptoms of Renal stones?

The most common symptom is an intense, colicky pain that may fluctuate in intensity over a period of 5 to 15 minutes. Other signs and symptoms may include:

• Bloody, cloudy or foul-smelling urine
• Nausea and vomiting
• Persistent urge to urinate
• Fever and chills if an infection is present

How can Homeopathy help?

Conventional medicine approaches renal stones as a single event based treatment, breaking the individual stone (lithotripsy) using various mechanisms, but does not address the overall tendency to get recurrent stones. However, just as Homeopathy can be used to speedily expel an existent stone(s); it is equally helpful in preventing recurrence of the stones in those prone to getting repeated renal stones. Homeopathy is also useful in treating secondary infections of the urinary tract arising after injury from the moving stone.