Any Disers Have or Had Kidney Stones?

[desiab]

We were at the hospital for almost 7 hours last night with my DH in severe pain. After tests and a CT Scan we found out that he has a 3 mm kidney stone.

For those that have experienced kidney stones...How long did it take for yours to pass? Is there anything that can be done to make the process happen faster?

Sorry if this was TMI.

 

[Felicia]

i haven't had one, but my 9yo DD did!!! Yes, she is only 9 but thanks to wonderful genes from her daddy's side, she got one this past year.

It was discovered in November 2005 by having visible blood in her urine. Sono showed it in small and in the kidney. She was told by the Nephrologist to drink water, a lot of it, and it would pass. One night in January 2006, she began throwing up and in pain. Turned out the stone grew and ended up lodged in her ureter. She had a laser lithotripsy done on February 1.

So from what we learned drinking plenty of water helps to pass them. Good luck to him!

 

[Disney Hot Mama]

I have had two bouts of kidney stones both while pregnant with my daughter. I was about 7 months pregnant and thought I was losing her when it first happened. The pain was way worse than a C-Section (so if you DH complained he was not being a baby!) Rushed to hospital and taken to labor and delivery just in case. Untrasound, blood and urine work done and finally given moriphine! They said it would not hurt the baby. Well a cathether (sp) was placed and the monitered me overnight (and strained output)to see if it had passed. It did and I was sent home. Well less than 48 hours later it hit again. I was rushed back to hospital and immediately requested moriphine - a 7 months pregnant woman screaming give me moriphine! The checked the chart and did. Again same thing, cathetor, overnight stay and all better. Haven't had any since then thank goodness.
I don't think you can make them pass quicker unless the doctors interveens. They will pass on their own and it is painful.

Drink lots of water for the rest of his life and that is supposed to help them not reoccur.

Good luck and I hope he got some good drugs!

 

[YourMajesty]

My friend just had one removed. She waited over a month but it didn't pass. I'm not sure but I think it was 5mm. She was on pain meds as needed duirng that time. Good luck...hopefully it will pass soon.

 

[supercarrie]

I have had several (caused by hyperparathyroidism, which is basically an overproduction of calcium in my body.) Two of them could not pass on their own, and needed lithotripsies in order to break them up. However, the lithotripsy machine at my hospital does not work well, and both times the stones broke up into smaller fragments which eventually blocked my kidney. I was admitted to the hospital each time in order to keep a continual IV going to get the smaller pieces through. Not a pleasant experience - usually lithotripsies go much more smoothly!

Regarding how long they will take to pass, it really varies on the size of the stone. If they are not big enough to break up via lithotripsy, just drink LOTS of water, and have your pain medication available. Each time I went to the ER they sent me home with Vicodin ES, but of course sometimes that did not work, and I needed to go in for a morphine drip and IV. With the amount of stones I had, they knew me by name in there!

Also, if possible, try and catch it when it finally does pass using a strainer. They will be able to test it and determine what type of stone it is, and sometimes give you more specific tips on how to avoid them. For example, since they determined mine were calcium stones, I got a long list of foods to avoid, and had surgery on my parathyroid eventually to get the calcium levels reduced.

 

[motherhen17404]

DH passes kidney stones about 1 or 2 every month! This has been going on for over 10 years. He drinks a lot of water, but when he know that a stone is working its way out, he will drink a few beers. For some reason the beer tends to work better for him then water. There are other things that we do to get the stone moving, but this is a family board so I will not post them here. I hope your DH is feeling better.

 

[Pop Daddy]

I had two, and you know what they did to me , I couldnt pass them after a week or so, they put my legs in stirups , and then put a camera inside me (yep thru there) to look at things. It was the most pain I have ever been in

 

[MsDisney23]

I've never had them, but my sister did when we where kids. they had to operate on her! I remember her being real sick with alot of pain. I hope your DH feels better soon!

 

[Obi-Wan Pinobi]

I had one a few months ago -- about 3.5mm, they said. It was probably the worst pain I've ever felt.

I had to go to the ER because it hit me at 11:00 at night. They put me on an IV, did a MRI, prescribed me some painkillers (to which Lauri said "this is wussy stuff!") and flomax (which is supposed to relax the muscles down there and make it easier to pass), a strainer to catch anything, and a referral to a urologist.

The Flomax must have worked, because when I went to the urologist a few days later they said it didn't show on the x-ray so it passed. There was some stuff in the strainer; the stone must have broken up and passed through.

 

[amy4bruce]

I have had several bouts with kidney stones. Some have passed by drinking lots of water. One was so large it took laser surgery and lithotripsy to break it up.

You have my sympathies. Just remember - once it's over, it's over. (Alas, until the next time - but there doesn't have to be a next time if they can figure out what caused it. My doctor told me to drink lots of lemonade.)

 

[miss missy]

OUCH!!!!!!! This is the most painful thing I ever had, even over labor !!

Mine passed in the ER, so I was in pain for about 24 hrs. Thought I hurt my back. When it is blocking the urine, that is when the pain is severe, the tube is blocked, when it moves and the urine can pass, the pain calms. They consider it passed once it enters the blatter. I had to pee in a cone filter to try and catch it, but I never did.

My ex-rays amazed me as the tube on that side was so swollen and huge, the other side was a line you could hardly see. Now wonder so much pain!

Sometimes the man cant pass it and they do a catheter. My friend had one at home for a week.

I havent had another and that was 10 years ago. Every now and then I feel that area have twinges of pain, so I bet tiny ones come around now and then.

Maybe surgery if it doesn't pass, but pain meds are in order to get him through!

 

[Tina]

I have had several kidney stones over the years. I get at least 2 every year. I've never had one so large that I couldn't pass it, but they all vary in time to pass. Some pass within hours, some pass over the course of several weeks. I've never found anything that seems to speed them along.

 

[Laurajean1014]

My DH has two cases of stones. First one they put in a stint to have the stone pass (very painful and would not recommend it). It took 4 weeks for the stone to pass.

About 8 weeks ago, DH came home throwing up and in severe pain. DR. told him to DRINK A BEER. DH does not drink, so he waited it out and passed it that night.

Anyone who has/had stones, please try the following (it won't hurt you).

Drink lots of water
Drink lots of lemonade
Drink a jigger or shot glass of apple cider vinegar once a week

Any of the above will help your body release the buildup of calcium or milk products which cause kidney stones.

 

[rayelias]

I used to get them once a year like clockwork. Worst pain I have ever felt. Any guys who've never had them... it feels like getting kicked in the over, and over, and over, and over, and over...

Women, I am told by doctors that it is the closest thing on the pain scale to childbirth (without medication).

I used to chew on Rolaids/Tums before and have since stopped. I've only gotten 1 stone since then (thank God).

They've always been small enough to pass. Funny thing, the "passing" part doesn't really hurt (for me, at least). The part that hurts, from what I'm told, is when the stone is moving from the kidney to the bladder - there's a tube that is usually flat when not being used. When the stone gets stuck in there, that's what causes the pain.

and then put a camera inside me (yep thru there) to look at things. It was the most pain I have ever been in

Pop Daddy, I never had the camera. Scared to death of it. Was the camera part "the most pain [you] have ever been in" or were you referring to the stones in general. I think I'd rather put a bullet in my head than a camera in my .

 

[rayelias]

IMPORTANT!!!

Learn from my mistake...

I heard from several people (as was also posted here by a few people) that drinking a beer helps the stone pass. I even had a doctor tell me this.

So, One time, when I had an attack, I downed a beer (I don't drink, by the way) hoping it would work. Anything to keep me out of the hospital at 3AM. I don't know why, but every time I get them in the wee (pun intended) hours of the morning.

Anyhow, the beer didn't work. So, I high-tailed it over to the ER. Told the Doc I tried the beer solution. I got a lecture for what seemed like 30 minutes about "mixing medication" (alcohol & morphine - or whatever they were going to give me) and wouldn't give me the pain meds until a certain time had passed (I guess until the 8 oz beer had vacated my system).

So, beware the "beer solution" if you want some real effective meds to alleviate the severe pain.

 

[Jeafl]

My husband just passed a 5mm one a couple of weeks ago. It took him almost 2 weeks to pass it, which was a nightmare. He still has another one in his kidney which is not causing him trouble at the moment. As someone else said, it is when they pass through the drainage tube that they cause you pain.

What makes it more complicated for him is we also just found out he has a "horseshoe" kidney, which basically means that his kidneys fused together into one large horseshoe shaped kidney. This also means that you can't blast it, or go in and get it like other kidney stones. Therefore, he either had to pass it on his own, or have major surgery where they sliced the kidney open to go get it.

As far as pain relief, the ER doctor recommended getting a towel wet, wringing it out good and putting it into the microwave for 2 minutes then putting that on his back. The moist heat helps the back pain. It helped a little anyway. They gave him Vicodin, but that made him vomit, so he stuck with taking 4 Advil every 4 hours.

 

[motherhen17404]

Anyone who has/had stones, please try the following (it won't hurt you).

Drink lots of water
Drink lots of lemonade
Drink a jigger or shot glass of apple cider vinegar once a week

Any of the above will help your body release the buildup of calcium or milk products which cause kidney stones.

Yes, most kidney stones are made up of calcium, but they also can be from a buildup of uric acid. This is what DH's stones are made of. But everytime they test his uric acid it is low. DH has been on meds to try to reduce his stones, but nothing works. We have done a lot of research on stones and the new thinking is to do what Laurajean suggests. DH already drinks a lot of water, so he has started drinking a lot of lemonade also. But sadly, there is not much that can really be done for DH, he has learned to deal with the pain.

 

[desiab]

Thanks for all of the suggestions and stories. I mentioned the camera to DH and he said "Ouch!". I also mentioned the suggestions for drinks and while he is not a beer or lemonade drinker, if it will help then he is willing to try.

The ER doctor prescribed Loratab for the pain, but the relief wears off faster than the meds they were giving him in the hospital. I am just hoping that this is his one and only experience with stones.

Thanks again all!

 

[Pop Daddy]

Pop Daddy, I never had the camera. Scared to death of it. Was the camera part "the most pain [you] have ever been in" or were you referring to the stones in general. I think I'd rather put a bullet in my head than a camera in my .

it was the camera that hurt most