It’s estimated that about one in 10 people in the United States will develop a kidney stone at some point in their lifetime. You can rely on the medical skill and expertise of the specialists at Urology Care, P.C. in Tucson, Arizona to design an effective treatment plan that relieves your symptoms and helps prevent kidney stones from recurring in the future. Call the clinic today to schedule an appointment or book your visit online.
Kidney stones occur when salts and minerals contained in your urine clump together and form small hard deposits that can be as small as a grain of sand or as large as a golf ball.
You may have one or numerous stones of varying sizes, which can remain in your kidneys or slip into the small tubes (ureters) that carry urine from your kidneys to the bladder.
Once they’ve left your kidneys, stones can travel throughout your urinary system. Small stones may pass without notice. Larger stones, however, can cause significant pain as urine flow forces them through too-narrow spaces.
Kidney stones occur when the normal balance of water, salts, minerals, and other substances found in urine are thrown off balance, most commonly due to:
Symptoms of kidney stones can include:
Treatment depends upon the severity of your symptoms and the size or location of your stone. Your provider may recommend:
For large or lodged stones, you may require treatments such as extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL), which uses shock waves to break a kidney stone into small pieces that can pass out of the body in your urine.
Your doctor at Urology Care may also recommend an endoscopic extraction. During this procedure, an endoscope is inserted through the urethra and bladder, then into the tubes connecting the kidneys to the bladder. When the endoscope reaches the stones, they’re broken into small pieces and extracted.
Your Urology Care specialist can recommend a variety of steps you can take to help prevent kidney stones, including:
If you’re experiencing symptoms that may be related to kidney stones, schedule an appointment at Urology Care today by calling the office or booking your visit online.
