Kidney Stones (Renal Calculi)

Definition:

Renal Stone or Nephrolithiasis Kidney stones (calculi) are hardened mineral deposits that from in the kidney. They originate as microscopic particles and develop into stones over time. The medical term for this condition is nephrolithiasis, or renal stone disease. There can be one or more stones that are present in the pelvis or calyces of the kidney or in the ureter.

Causes:

• Hyperexcretion of relatively insoluble rinary constituents
• Decreased urinary output of citrate
• Vitamin deficiency
• Urinary infection
• Urinary stasis
• Hyperparathyroidism
• Prolonged immobilisation
• Nidus of stone formation
• Physiological changes in urine
• Altered urinary crystalloids and colloids

Predisposing factors:

Environmental factors:

• Low urine volumes.
• High ambient temperatures.
• Low fluid intake.
• Diet.
• High protein intake.
• High sodium.
• Low calcium.
• High sodium excretion.
• High oxalate excretion.
• High urate excretion.
• Low citrate excretion.

Other medical conditions:

• Hypercalcemia of any cause
• Ileal disease or resection (leading to increased oxalate absorption and urinary excretion)
• Renal tubular acidosis type I

Congenital and inherited conditions:

• Familial hypercalciuria
• Medullary sponge kidney
• Cystinuria
• Renal tubular acidosis type I
• Primary hyperoxaluria

Types of Stone

• Calcium Oxalate Stones
• Uric acid stones
• Cystine stones
• Struvite stones & staghorn calculi
• Xanthine stones

Symptoms:

• Colicky pain: “loin to groin”. Often described as “the worst pain [...] even experienced”.
• Hematuria: blood in the urine, due to minor damage to inside wall of kidney, ureter and/or urethra.
• Pyuria: pus (white blood cells) in the urine.
• Dysuria: burning on urination when passing stones (rare). More typical of infection.
• Oliguria: reduced urinary volume caused by obstruction of the bladder or urethra by stone, or extremely rarely, simultaneous obstruction of both ureters by a stone.
• Abdominal distension.
• Nausea/vomiting: embryological link with intestine – stimulates the vomiting center.
• Fever and chills.
• Hydronephrosis.
• Postrenal azotemia: when kidney stone blocks ureter.
• frequency in micturation: Defined as an increase in number of voids per day (>than 5 times), but not an increase of total urine output per day (2500 ml). That would be called polyuria.
• loss of appetite.
• loss of weight.

Investigations:

• Blood examination.
• Urinalysis.
• Radiography.
  1. Straight X-ray.
  2. Excretory urogram.
• Ultrasonography.
• Computed tomography.
• Renal Scan.
• Cystoscopy.
• Stone analysis.

The following investigations are appropriate in bilateral and recurrent stone formers:

• Serum calcium, measured fasting on three occasions to exclude hyperparathyroidism
• Serum uric acid
• Urinary urate, calcium and phosphate in a 24 hour collection. The urine should also be screened for cystine.
• Analysis of any stone passed.

Dietary Advice:

• Coconut Water
• Almond
• Barley
• Pineapple juice
• Bananas
• Lemons
• Carrots
• Horse Grams
• Bitter gourd

Dietary Restriction:

• Milk and Milk products
• Leafy vegetables
• Tomato
• Fish
• Non- veg

Suggestion about homeopathic treatment:

Kidney Stones, acute as well as chronic,  can be effectively treated with Homeopathic Medicines. Homeopathic treatment  can avoid surgery in many cases. It is highly recommended in cases where tendency of having recurrent stones is there. Patient’s case history is studied in detail and a well selected homeopathic medicine is given which removes this tendency from patient’s body so that he does not have any more stones again. It has especially proved very helpful in cases of stones where surgery or other procedure is not advisable due to various reasons. All homeopathic medicines are safe, natural, easy to administer and without any adverse effects.

Prevention of any more Kidney Stones:

Kidney Stones can be prevented by drinking more water. Try to drink 12 full glasses of water a day. Drinking lots of water helps to flush away the substances that form stones in the kidneys. If you have a uric acid stone, eat less meat, because meat breaks down to make uric acid.