If you’re dealing with kidney stones, you probably want to understand what your options are when it comes to treating the condition. There’s a lot of confusion out there about how to properly deal with kidney stones. Here are the different kidney stone treatment options that you should be aware of.
1. Natural treatments
If your kidney stone isn’t excruciatingly painful, you can attempt to try to pass the stone naturally. It’s recommended that you drink 8 to 10 glasses of water a day to help your body clear out the stones. Drinking orange juice, lemonade, and limeade can also help because these drinks contain citric acid. Citric acid has been shown to reduce the growth of stones and aid your body in breaking them down.
There are also various supplements that can help you deal with kidney stones. Supplements with chanca piedra have worked for some kidney stone sufferers. However, medical professionals do not recommend taking chanca piedra for more than 3 months. There are other supplements out there that do not use this ingredient and appear to be delivering very desirable results. A newer supplement to address calcium oxalate kidney stones is Kidney C.O.P. Calcium Oxalate Protector. It has shown in laboratory tests to be five times more powerful than a 5:1 Chanca Piedra Extract at reducing the rate of calcium oxalate crystal growth. In laboratory tests the Kidney C.O.P. formula has also shown to reduce the rate of calcium oxalate crystal growth by 99%. The best way to assess supplements is to read customer reviews on legitimate websites and platforms.
2. Shock wave lithotripsy
This is a treatment where a lithotripsy emits shock waves to break up the stones. This is not an invasive procedure and the machine is used through your skin. It has a good track record of helping patients pass kidney stones, in the early stages.
However, this kidney stone treatment option does have limitations. It will not work for larger stones or very hard stones. It may also not work for patients that are obese. The machine is meant to go from the skin to the stone. With obesity, there is a lot of fat tissue that can get in the way of the process.
3. Ureteroscopy
If natural treatments do not work, you can opt for ureteroscopy. This is a treatment that is more invasive than shock wave lithotripsy. A tube is placed through your urethra. This tube will be able to travel all the way to your ureters and even to your kidneys.
The surgeon will then use a tool installed in the tube to break up the kidney stone. This treatment is ideal if you have large stones that you have a lot of difficulty passing. The fact that this treatment is more invasive may be worrying to you, but complications from ureteroscopys are fairly rare.
4. Medication
Prescription medication has been proven to work for kidney stones. You will want to visit your doctor to get a diagnosis on what type of kidney stone you are dealing with. The reason for this is because there are different medications for different types of stones.
There are calcium oxalate stones, uric acid stones, struvite, and cystine stones. Be aware that one single medication will not work for all the different types of kidney stones. Medication is a good route to take if you find that you have a higher risk of developing stones due to genetics.
Even if you do your best in following a strict diet, you may have to deal with regular bouts of kidney stones. Taking the right medication can help keep your kidney stone issue in check.
If you find yourself dealing with kidney stones despite consuming a moderate diet and having no family history of kidney stones, you should look at your health issues and medication. Certain health conditions and medications can increase the chances of you developing kidney stones.
You should look to treat your health condition and research the effects the medication you’re currently taking has on the development of kidney stones. Sometimes, it’s just a matter of addressing the bigger health issue or replacing the medication you are taking.
