Kidney Stones
More than half a million people seek emergency treatment for kidney stones each year because of the excruciating pain and other disruptive symptoms they cause. At Urology Care of Central New Jersey, located in Edison, New Jersey, board-certified urologist Binod Sinha, MD, FACS, provides expert diagnosis and treatments to relieve your kidney stone pain and help your stone pass. Call the practice or schedule an appointment online today for compassionate and knowledgeable kidney stone treatment.
Kidney Stones Q & A
What are kidney stones?
Your kidneys are responsible for cleaning your blood by filtering out waste products. Sometimes those waste products form hard, crystalized deposits known as kidney stones. In many cases, you may pass microscopic kidney stones without knowing it. However, if the deposits are larger, they can cause intense pain as they move out of your kidneys and through your urinary tract to exit your body.
Kidney stones cause a variety of disruptive symptoms including:
- Painful urination
- Pain in your lower back and sides, abdomen, and genital area
- Hematuria (bloody urine)
- Cloudy or foul-smelling urine
- Frequent need to urinate, but releasing only small amounts of urine
- Fever
Make an appointment with Dr. Sinha for diagnosis and treatment if you experience any of these symptoms.
What causes kidney stones?
Some of the substances that form kidney stones are calcium, oxalate, urate, cystine, xanthine, and phosphate. The stones form when there are higher volumes of these substances in your blood than your kidneys can efficiently dilute.
Common risk factors for kidney stones include:
- Dehydration
- A diet high in protein, salt, or sugar
- Obesity
- Inflammatory bowel diseases
- Gastric bypass surgery
- Medical conditions such as frequent urinary tract infections, hyperparathyroidism, and cystinuria
If you have a personal or family history of kidney stones, your risk of developing the condition increases.
How are kidney stones diagnosed?
Dr. Sinha uses several tests to diagnose kidney stones. He usually begins diagnosis with blood and urine tests to check how much calcium and uric acid is in your blood and to measure the amount of stone-forming minerals in your urine. He also uses imaging tests such as X-rays, ultrasounds, and CT scans to look for kidney stones in your urinary tract.
How are kidney stones treated?
Dr. Sinha provides treatments to both reduce your pain and to help your stones pass quickly. He prescribes painkillers to ease your discomfort as well as drugs such as alpha blockers to relax the muscles in your ureter to help the stone exit your body quickly and with less pain.
If your kidney stones are large, Dr. Sinha may suggest extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) to break the stone into smaller pieces that are easier to pass. In severe cases, for example, if a kidney stone is blocking a ureter and causing a kidney infection, he may need to perform surgical procedures to remove the stones.
Don’t suffer through kidney stone pain, call Urology Care of Central New Jersey or schedule an appointment online for expert medical care.