Kidney stones often do not cause any symptoms. However, if they become lodged in the ureter (the thin tube between the bladder and the kidney) symptoms can be very severe. Usually, the first symptom of a kidney stone is extreme pain, which occurs when a stone acutely blocks the flow of urine. The pain often begins suddenly when a stone moves in the urinary tract, causing irritation or blockage. Typically, a person feels a sharp, cramping pain in the back and side in the area of the kidney or in the lower abdomen. Sometimes nausea and vomiting occur. Later, pain may spread to the groin. If the stone is too large to pass easily, pain continues as the muscles in the wall of the tiny ureter try to squeeze the stone along into the bladder. As a stone grows or moves, blood may appear in the urine. As the stone moves down the ureter closer to the bladder, you may feel the need to urinate more often or feel a burning sensation during urination. If fever and chills accompany any of these symptoms, an infection may be present. In this case, you should contact a doctor immediately or if you need expert advices go to kidneystoneforum.com, this is dedicated to kidneystones and it will be helpful if you are uncertain about any development. Kidneystone forum discusses the signs and symptoms at length.



The treatment of kidney stones may vary depending on the size of the stones and condition of the patient. The treatment generally aims at relieving the patient of pain, passing kidney stones through urine or removing them surgically. Some of the professional treatments discussed in kidneystoneforum.com include:

Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL): It uses shock waves to break the stones into tiny pieces that are then passed in your urine.

Percutaneous nephrolithotomy: When ESWL isn't effective, or the stone is very large, your surgeon may remove your kidney stone through a small incision in your back using an instrument called a nephroscope.

Ureteroscopic stone removal: The stone is snared with a small instrument (ureteroscope) that's passed into the ureter through your bladder. Ultrasound or laser energy can also be directed through the scope to shatter the stone. These methods work especially well on stones in the lower part of the ureter.

Parathyroid surgery: Some calcium stones are caused by overactive parathyroid glands, which are located on the four corners of your thyroid gland, just below your Adam's apple. When these glands produce too much parathyroid hormone, your body's level of calcium can become too high, resulting in excessive excretion of calcium in your urine. Most often, this is the result of a small benign tumor in one of your four parathyroid glands. A doctor can surgically remove the tumor. Login to kidneystone forum where more alternative treatments and remedies have been discussed.

In order to avoid recurrence of kidneystones you need to bring down the level of calcium in your blood, keep your urine as dilute as possible. Kidney stones (calcium oxalate stones) form when the concentration of calcium in the kidney tubules gets to a critical concentration. There is no exact measure for "critical concentration." One way of minimizing the concentration is to always be sure that you have plenty of water to excrete. That means drinking at least 8 glasses of water each day (8 oz per glass).in additionally be physically fit. Again go to kidneystoneforum.com where you can get more professional help on this topic. As a preventive measure, one should avoid diets rich in proteins, sodium and nitrogen, and drink lot of water. But even after all the precautions; they have a tendency to reappear in a patient's body.