Kidney Stones?

[Rita]

I have been battling HUGE kidney stones for several months. They are struvite staghorn stones. Does anyone know of any remedies to help dissolve these? Thanks!

[Lois]

Stone Management

 

http://www.urostonecenter.com/management.asp

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is an article that explains the formation and treatment, It is quite long, but you need to read it as there are some things that are important for you to be aware of.

http://www.geocities.com/medipedia/000458.htm

But in the meantime start drinking quantities of water to dilute the urine and the agents that form the stones.

It will be necessary for you to continue drinking at least 2 quarts of water a day to prevent the future formation of more stones.

I have always used cranberry juice or capsules to prevent infections, but don’t know if this would work quickly enough in your case, because of the size.

[Broadsword]

My father and both of my brothers suffer from kidney stones. My dad and one brother have been in the hospital for it. I've never had one. The only reason I can think of is the fact that I drink tea instead of coffee and I drink alot more of it than they do.

I probably drink 6-8 cups of tea daily. Just plain ole lipton tea. I know that might not help you but I'm convinced it's the reason I haven't had any.

Broadsword

[zzelle]

drink pleanty of water and cranberry juice ar cranberry with something else mixed make sure 100% juice and that should help. my husband says when you fell like an attack is coming on get in the tub with the water as hot as you can stand and fill it as full as you can and relax and soak and that should help. drink 1 gallon of water a day to flush your kidnies. i hope this help.

[mommato3boys]

Eat lots of watermelon. I suffered from a kidney stone (give me labor and delivery any day at least I get something out of the pain) The doctor told me to drink a beer a day when I felt the onset of one. I told him I didn't drink beer can't stand the smell so he told me to eat a lot of watermelon. It would flush the kidneys.

[Jewlzm]

Ive heard of the watermelon and the cranberry juice. Stuff thats 100 percent to purge your system. This website has some useful information on Alternative medical treatments.. herbal and the likes. I hope this helps.

 

http://www.ayurvediccure.com/kidneystones.htm

 

[zzelle]

i have never heard of eating watermelon i hope it works for you

[SueC]

Because they are staghorns, they are already quite big. The staghorn means that the stone is sitting at the top of the uretha and that the stone is now growing into all the little vein type of things (Cant think of the proper terms!) that are attched to the kidney and that collect the urine to send down to the bladder. be careful about home remedies. I tried a couple and ended up in hospital in agony. When there is pain the stone is trying to move. To reduce the pain you can use a hot water bottle or something similar. If the stone shifts further down, it can cause a blockage - nice puffy ankles cauld be an indication of this. A stent can be inserted to help.

 

This site has a lot of information:

 

http://www.emedicine.com/med/topic2834.htm

 

If you need surgery - it is relatively simple, I had surgery on a Monday and was out of hospital on the Friday. I did need a couple more weeks taking it easy after that. I tried all sorts of remedies, I suspect that some of them actually caused more problems and faster growth. Keep talking to your Dr. get referred to a specialist, dont let them ignore you.

 

Sue

[Rita]

Yes, this has been a real uphill battle Sue. It is still taking up 25% of the kidney after 4 lithotripsies and yes, it hurts all of the time, plus causes constant infections. We just moved so I am hoping that the med care here is better than where I moved from... Thanks...

[Mother]

I've hesitated to jump in here on this thread because I know that some alternative healing modalities can make the pain worse as the stones start to move. That could be dangerous as well as painful in some instances.

 

Still, there's one thing that, unless I missed it, hasn't been brought up. What is CAUSING these stones and what has been suggested that you do about changing that situation? Has any consideration been given to diet, drinking water, polution, medications, etc?

 

(((( ))))

 

 

[zzelle]

very true mother she needs to find out what caused them and try to prevent them in the future

[anna]

I agree the best way to deal with kidney stones is to prevent them. The last attack I had they were able to capture a stone and did a lab analysis to determine the type of stone. The doctor then gave me a diet list of things to avoid, to eat in moderation and okay foods. Unfortunately all the dark colored veggies & fruits, tea, cola are all on my to avoid list. Spinach is on the avoid list and I love it as is tea. However, I only drink regular tea one cup a week now instead of several daily and eat Spinach, beets, etc. only as occasional treats. Beer and white wine are okay but I hate them. Isn't that always the way!!

[zzelle]

good luck

[Mother]

Anna, it sounds like they are restricting the high oxalic acid foods. Still, that isn't a cure and only if it helps does it point to what might be going on in your system. I, too, have to restrict my oxalic acid food due to a problem with Interstial Cysitis but I still have trouble with it even at that. I have discovered that I don't have it nearly as bad when we are away from our area for a couple of days. That leads me to believe it's toxins more than anything but the true test will come when we are traveling this summer. I intend to keep close track of what I eat, and my symptoms.

 

It might help you to do some research into other causes of your stones. My brother has kidney stones quite severely but has no trouble with them as long as he drinks lots of distilled or filtered water. He has his own well but it's drilled through limestone and he believes the latent minerals may be what's causing some of his problems. He also lives almost next to the Mississippi River, as do we, and it's possible the water in this area is actually contaminated. I know the river is. We also have tons of field chemicals being sprayed on surrounding crop land yearly and we have many large factories in the area as well. Any and all of the chemicals connected with those things are known to cause kidney and urinary tract problems.

 

Even if you have city water that's been treated to make it 'safe' it's still possible to have chemicals in the water. LOTS of chemicals considering that the EPA allows a certain percentage of most chemicals. It's something to think about at least. In the case of kidney stones, it's a whole lot better to prevent than it is to manage.

 

Just some thoughts. Hope they help.

[Rita]

They are struvite stones, which are also called infection stones. The doc is thinking that they are a result of my diabetes and has told me to drink, drink, drink. Mind you, that does not help to get rid of the ones that I have, as they are just too huge, but it will help new ones not to form.

[zzelle]

drin,drink, drink and take care of yourself and hopefully no new ones will form.

[Amber]

I found these sites, doing some food chemical research.

 

http://kidney.niddk.nih.gov/kudiseases/pub...dults/index.htm

 

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/kidney-stones/DS00282

 

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/kidneystones.html

 

http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/293/9/1158

 

 

A cure?: http://www.uriflow.com/ noted on national tv

 

 

Amber

[westbrook]

I am going to have to read them.. all! Rita.. I feel your pain!

[Bookworm]

Rita - how are you? Sorry you're having such troubles Praying for relief for you!

 

[westbrook]

Well here I sit at 3am in pain. I went to the ER wed. night for pain like I have never felt before! (note to self... stock up on powerful pain meds!) After almost passing out from pain in the waiting room, a very sweet custodian mopping the floor by the water fountain where I was trying to splash water on my face to keep from passing out, noticed I am shivering in pain, tears streaming down my face trying to stay conscience. Because of this lady, I was immediately taken in. A lot of good that did.. 4 hours on a gurney, getting up pacing, laying back down, exhausted! finally a nurse comes by inserts an IV and leaves.

 

Another hour goes by before another nurse comes back with nausea meds, morphine, and something else to put in my IV. No more pain! finally some relief.

 

Now eight hours after getting admitted a doctor comes by.. asks.. is there a history of kidney stones? no. Where does it hurt? I show him. Is there blood in the urine? no. Well then, a nurse will come by take blood and we need a urine sample.. oh and nurse get a CT scan. I would like add.. they were not busy.

 

Another 2 hours passes and I get a blood test and am taken to get my CT scan. No urine test. It is now 12 hours since I was admitted into the ER a nurse comes by and says.. ok you can go home. Here are some prescriptions.. blah, blah blah. Now remember I am drugged! I ask what is wrong with me and they say 'renal collic'. I have to ask.. huh? as I am trying to clear my head to comprehend what she is saying to me. So I have a kidney that is spasming. HUH? and they rush me out. Now 6am, I can barely walk, see, let alone thing.. I stagger out to my truck.

 

I had to drive myself there and now I must drive myself home, first stopping to get my prescription. I sit in my truck and try to gather my thoughts.. put on my driving hat, thankful it is 6am and little traffic out. I get my meds and go home.

 

Once home I start to research this renal collic. So what I think I have is nothing more then a kidney infection. It is now Saturday morning and I am in pain waiting for the pain meds to take affect.. they have.

 

I looked up Kidney infection and while I didn't have a fever of 102 for a couple of days, I actually had a fever of 96-97.3 for the last 2 weeks! Thinking I caught my grandsons cold or flu from all his wonderful hugs and kisses I hadn't paid too much attention with the exception that I was so tried.

 

I think what I have is a Kidney infection. I have all the symptoms of a kidney infection except this extreme pain I have.

 

Now I bet you are bored with this and wondering where the heck I am going with this long drawn out story... I am getting to it.

 

I started this out in its own thread called 'Antibiotics' but decided to bury it here for the moment. Later on I can pull it out if needed and put it in its own place.

 

After looking up Kidney Infection and how to cure it I see there are four antibiotics I can use.

 

* Sulfa drugs such as sulfisoxazole/trimethoprim

* Amoxicillin

* Cephalosporins

* Levofloxacin and ciprofloxacin

 

So I go to my medicine chest I have 1 of the four drugs mentioned. Well.. sort of.

 

FishMox Amoxicillin - 100 tablets. each pill is 250mg. I paid $17.95

 

this is "for control of common bacterial infections in fish"

 

I have medical insurance, I can go to the doctor and get 'real amoxicillin' but I have to call, make an appoitment on Monday and wait till tues? wed? thrus? until I can get in.. but I can start taking my FishMox now and see if this will fix my problem! Oh I will go call the Doctor on Monday and all of that but I will know by Monday if this is a simple Kidney infection because 2.5 days of antibiotics will make a huge difference in how I feel. I will get a prescription, fill it and put it away.

 

In the mean time I am going to start taking my fish antibiotics right now. There! 2 pills to equal 500mg, I will take them 4 times a day.

 

 

 

 

[westbrook]

wow! my font changed! how did that happen? pretty cool though cause I can read it without squinting.

 

[Mother]

Westy, you are a brave soul for sure. I'm not sure I would take fish antibiotics myself but then I'm allergic to so many things.

 

Still, a week ago I was in your exact same position only I didn't go to the ER. (can you catch this over the internet????) Been there, done that and know what it's like though. I DID run a fever with whatever I had. My normal temp is between 96.4 and 97.2 and I ran a 101 for two days. Was tired and a bit achey in the side for several weeks before but the pain was as you describe it. Excruciating! We do NOT have insurance and could not afford the trip. I told DH if he found me out cold he could then call the sons to help haul me to the hospital but not before.

 

Instead of antibiotics I started taking herb teas and quarts of water. Dandelion tea for it's diuretic properties and a few others thrown in for taste and medical benefit. Slippery elm bark and marshmallow root for their soothing qualities, chamomile for it's calming, willow bark for the pain, ginger for the nausea, and thyme for it's antiseptic properties. The water being the prime thing here. I started on cranberry juice for it's acidifying properties even though I have interstitial cytisis and it's a no no for that. In all I probably drank two gallon a day for four days and in fact am still drinking much more than normal.

 

The third night, in the night, it suddenly stopped. Suddenly. It's left me with a very sore area there so I'm assuming that I had a kidney stone, probably with concurrent infection by that time but at least it WENT AWAY.

 

I will be very interested in the results you get with the Fishmox. I know I can't take amoxicillin and in fact Cipro is the only one of those I'd consider. Is yours an RX or another form like the fishmox? I know you had a thread somewhere about that sort of thing. We need to ressurect it.

 

I really hope you are better soon. I REALLY feel your pain.

 

(((( Westy))))

[zzelle]

hope you get taken care of and feel better soon

[westbrook]

thanks zzelle but I want to focus more on preps then my health.

 

I couldn't be sitting here if it wasn't for the pain meds! think long and hard about this.

 

I won't know if I indeed have a UTI for another day of meds. But to let everyone know I am still here and kickin' after taking fishmox.

 

http://www.thomaslabs.com/tlabsstaticweb2_009.htm

 

please understand I am not advising anyone to take or do what I am doing! I just need to get started on something because I don't want this to get any worse then it is.

[SueC]

For any one who has never had renal colic - it is extreme pain! To get on top it is so neccessary, and then to stay on top.

 

Westie, I hope the dr can help identify the problem quickly