There are few things as painful as passing a kidney stone. Some people compare it to giving birth. With around 600,000 kidney stone cases in the United States ever year, let’s take a look at 8 signs you may have kidney stones.
THAT Pain
Pain from a kidney stone comes on suddenly, and it’s so severe half a million patients visit an emergency room each year. Kidney stones are made of hard mineral fragments. They usually exit the body without any pain, however when they are too large to pass on their own, you get waves of pain as they move. You can feel the pain in different places and it becomes progressively worse.
The pain develops in your back and along your side below the ribs. It can also progress to your abdomen and groin as the stone moves down the urinary tract.
Peeing More Frequently
You will find yourself needing to urinate more frequently with a kidney stone. You may even find yourself needing to go urgently as the stone moves into your urinary tract. Many people think they have a urinary tract infection.
Pain And Burning When Urinating
It can be a sharp or burning pain. You may think you have a urinary tract infection.
Blood In The Urine
You will see red, pink, or brown in the urine with a kidney stone, but you may not be able to see it with the naked eye. This is known as hematuria.
Cloudy Or Foul Smelling Urine
This symptom could mean an infection in your kidney or your urinary tract. This is a serious condition if you also have a kidney stone.
Nausea And Vomiting
This is a significant sign of a kidney stone. It can happen from nerves causing an upset stomach, or it could be from the intense pain.
Fever And Chills
This is an indication of an infection and a serious complication of a kidney stone. Don’t delay to see the Texas Center for Urology in Fort Worth or visit the nearest ER if you know you’re trying to pass a kidney stone and develop fever and chills.
One Other Serious Symptom
If you can only urinate just a little, or you can’t urinate at all, this is a medical emergency.
Don’t wait to get medical care if you have pain in combination with the other symptoms. Contact Texas Center for Urology at (817) 871-9069
or visit the nearest emergency room.