I thought it was a herniated disc, but urinary calculus, how to self-check?
Mar 09, 2025
|
Yang Seung-cheol, a Urology specialist at Gangnam Bedro Hospital, emphasized, "In fact, patients who suspected muscle pain or herniated disc are often diagnosed with urinary stones. If a urinary stone is not properly recognized and left unattended, it can lead to serious complications, so it is very important to properly grasp it and receive early treatment."
◇ Risk of complications if left unattended due to lack of moisture 'urinary stones'
Urolithiasis is a disease in which the concentration of calcium, uric acid, and hydroxyl in the urine increases due to abnormal metabolism and aggregates into crystals, resulting in stones in the form of stones in the body. It is one of the relatively common diseases experienced by about 3% of the population, and there is also a domestic study that the risk of urinary calculus during life is about 11.5%. It occurs frequently in middle-aged people in their 40s and 60s, and the incidence rate of men is about twice as high as that of women. In particular, as of 2023, the number of patients with urinary tract stones (disease codes N20 to N23) in Korea is 340,000, and the number of patients is increasing every year due to changes in eating habits and lifestyle.
Urinary stones are highly associated with lack of water in the body. In particular, when water is lost due to sweating a lot, there is a high risk of kidney stones if water is not properly replenished. In fact, if you look at the data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, the number of patients with urinary tract stones tends to decrease as they enter winter and then surge again from March to April when their activity begins to increase. As we enter summer, the number of patients tends to increase further.
As mentioned earlier, the pain caused by urinary stones can be mistaken for other diseases and visited the wrong hospital, which may delay treatment.
Director Yang Seung-cheol said "If a stone is left unattended, the kidney may gradually expand, resulting in complications such as hydronephrosis, renal failure, and sepsis."Kidney function may gradually become dysfunctional and permanently impaired in just a few months, so quick and correct diagnosis and treatment are key" he explained.
In particular, if sudden and extreme pain occurs, such as stabbing in the side, abdomen, and waist, it is recommended to check whether it is a characteristic symptom of urinary stones. One of the simplest ways to check is to tap the side or the left and right sides of the back of the waist once in a while. At this time, if you feel severe pain, you should consult a specialist.
In addition, if ▲ pain lasts for tens of minutes to several hours and then disappears intermittently, ▲ Pain that does not ease regardless of posture, such as sitting or standing ▲ If you have symptoms such as urinary abnormalities such as hematuria, frequent urination, and urination, it is recommended to suspect urinary stones, not muscle pain or spinal diseases, at least once. In severe cases, symptoms such as nausea and vomiting may appear along with pain. Sometimes there may be asymptomatic stones with no pain or symptoms at all, so it is important to check your physical condition steadily through regular medical checkups.
◇ Depending on the location of the stones, treatment, sufficient water intake, and diet management are important
Treatment of urinary stones is carried out according to the situation, such as the location and size of the stones. If the size is less than 5mm, air therapy is performed to relieve pain while injecting fluid or drinking a large amount of water to naturally discharge it into the urine.
If the stone is large and it is judged that it is difficult to discharge naturally, treatment is performed to crush and remove the stone.
Among them, extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy is a representative treatment that shoots shock waves from outside the body to crush stones into small pieces and induce them to be discharged naturally. The procedure should be continuously checked for discharge, and additional procedures may be required if residual stone fragments remain or the discharge is not smooth. Another treatment is endoscopic stone resection. It is effective for stones in the lower ureter or bladder by inserting an endoscope into the body to break and take out stones directly. Because this procedure directly removes the stones themselves, immediate treatment effects can be seen.
It is important to prevent and manage urinary stones in advance. First of all, don't forget to drink enough water. It is good to drink 1.5-2 liters of water a day. It is also recommended to avoid excessive salt and high calcium food intake. It is also recommended to avoid high-protein foods. However, too little calcium can increase the absorption of fisheries and increase the risk of stones, so it is important to eat an appropriate amount of 800 to 1000 mg per day in a balanced manner. In addition, fruits containing a lot of citric acid, such as oranges and tangerines, help inhibit stone formation.
In particular, if you have a family history or have already had urinary tract stones, you should be more careful. The recurrence rate of urinary calculus within 5 years is 50%. Even if you have symptoms such as obesity and high blood pressure, or if you have an inflammatory bowel disease, chronic diarrhea, or a history of gastrointestinal bypass surgery, you have a high risk of stone formation, so special management is necessary.
Director Yang Seung-cheol advised that `Uro stones are not a disease that occurs overnight, but a disease that occurs gradually due to the continuous concentration of stone factors in the urine.' `It is important to prevent and manage the occurrence of stones in advance by improving lifestyle habits, as there is a high risk of recurrence once it occurs.'
|
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
