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The presence of kidney stones can cause plenty of problems. In some cases the pain can be so severe that, according to the author Kevin Murphy, “being gut-stabbed with a dirty spoon in a prison cafeteria is less painful”! (1). It was thought that consumption of too much calcium aggravated this condition, but the evidence suggests otherwise. It’s actually the low calcium diet, which is responsible for higher stone risk.
Kidney stones, also known as nephrolithiases, urolithiases or renal calculi, are formed from the crystals of minerals dissolved in urine and are generally found inside the kidneys or ureters. Their size can vary and some can be as big as a golf ball! Just have a look at the picture of a typical kidney stone below. Although, real miniscule ones generally leave the body through urine, larger ones can obstruct the ureter, making urine collect and cause severe pain felt in the flank, lower abdomen and groin.
You only come to know you’ve got stones when you experience pain. Symptoms generally include acute flank pain caused by renal colic, nausea and vomiting, restlessness, dull pain, hematuria, and possibly fever, in the event of infection. Acute renal colic is one of the worst types of pain a patient can suffer.
What’s surprising is the presence of a kidney stone may not cause pain to some, it’s only discovered when blood is passed in urine - the first symptom of kidney stone. If you don’t have pain and can’t see blood in urine, don’t think you can’t have a stone, routine medical test can show a miniscule amount of red blood cells in urine under a microscopic. This condition is called hematuria. (1)
The location and severity of the pain is usually the basis of diagnosis. If the pain comes and goes in spasmodic waves, it can be a typically colic condition. X-rays, ultrasound imaging and a number of other tests can confirm the presence of the stone. Further tests are done to find out the possible cause and consequences of the stone.
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