Painless Kidney Stone Removal

Kidney stones range in size from that of a single grain of sea salt to a golf ball. They appear as smooth or jagged, yellow or brown formations. The National Institutes of Health estimates that more than one million Americans will develop one of these crystalline masses at some point in their lives. Many factors contribute to their formation, such as diet and dehydration; and family history and certain illnesses or medications can put some individuals more at risk than others.

Home Remedy

• Unless the kidney stones have become large, kidney stones can be resolved at home relatively painlessly. According to the National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse (www.kidney.niddk.nih.gov), most stones pass out of the system without doctor assistance, though when a stone passes, try to catch it in a strainer for a show-and-tell session with your physician so that it can be sent to a lab for evaluation.

  Proper hydration can help your kidney stones pass at home painlessly. Drinking two to three quarts of water every day can help flush out existing stones, particularly if they're small. On days of heavy-to-profuse sweating, a daily fluid intake of more than 14 glasses is recommended. It is important that this consumption be distributed over the course of 24 hours, so you should also drink before going to bed. Club soda and calcium-rich mineral water, as well as fruit juices are good choices, but plain water works best. According to the National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse, ginger ale and lemon-lime sodas are also helpful.

  Fresh, fiber-filled fruits and vegetables can also help remove stones painlessly. Most fruits are acceptable except for Concord grapes (the purple ones), figs, tangerines, plums, kiwi and berries. Vegetables at the top of the list to help include celery, cucumber, white radish and asparagus. Vegetables that should be avoided include beans, sweet potatoes, green peppers, spinach, rhubarb, Swiss chard, okra, collards, leeks and beets. These contain oxalate, which, unless combined with foods providing a hefty supply of calcium, promotes an increase in oxalate excretion in the urine, which, in turn, promotes stones.

Medication

• Prescription medications are available to break down kidney stones so the stones can pass painlessly. Hydrochlorothiazide is a diuretic that reduces calcium buildup, and potassium citrate bonds with calcium to aid in the safe removal of kidney stones. Allopurinol is a drug used in the more common uric acid and calcium stone removal and is typically prescribed for those with gout. Some over-the-counter medications are also available to help dissolve stones so that they pass painlessly through the urinary tract. Check with your doctor to determine which one is best for you.

Laser Therapy

• Laser therapy can break up large kidney stones so that they are in smaller fragments. These fragments can pass more easily and painlessly. Laser therapy is relatively painless and is conducted as an out-patient procedure. Typically, laser therapy is recommended only when a stone is too large to pass painlessly on its own with just the aid of exercise and diet modifications.