# Lithotripsy for Kidney stones. Anyone had it done?



## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Mrs D (Michelle) is going into hospital tomorrow having waited 3 years for this procedure (long story).

She has had trouble with stones since she was about 20 including the now famous incident in the Italian Alps in the summer of 2012 (see blog).

They keep reacurring and she has two largish ones lodged in her kidney which they will try and break down tomorrow.

Just wondered if anyone has had this done. Did it work? were you ill? Did it hurt? How many times did you have to go back that kind of thing?

What concerns me the most is nobody along this long road to treatment seems to have made any effort into exploring why she keeps getting them. Presumably you have this treatment and its just going to happen again unless you find a way of preventing them.

Thanks


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## cabby (May 14, 2005)

I feel very sympathetic for her, stones and having you as well. :twisted: :twisted: 
Seriously, have they told her what type of stones they are and any dietary changes she should make.

cabby


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Thanks Cabby. Some people just have bad luck I guess. 

No they havent told her anything although I think they may have been analysed once as Calcium stones but there was no follow up to dicuss anything or the reasons behind them.

I have tried on a couple of occasions when with her at the hospital to get some answers but they just dont seem interested. Will see what tomorrow brings.

Just seems a bit daft to me to go through all these scans, xrays and treatment which presumably costs lots of money where perhaps some preventative steps would make more sense. Perhaps this will happen after this procedure but I am not holding my breath.


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## deefordog (Dec 31, 2013)

Mrs Deefor's dad had kidney stones many years ago and he was told (after he'd managed to pass them naturally - ouch!!!!!) to drink plenty of lemon and barley water and he never had them again.


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Thanks. Yes she does drink a lot of lemon water. They do recently seem to be on the increase though although I think her body as become more tollerant as she isnt usually as ill as she once was.


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## alecturn1 (Nov 13, 2009)

Yes I have this procedure twice the idea being it breaks up the stones into smaller pieces so that you can pass them naturally.When I had it done(approx. 15 Years ago) a mobile unit came to the hospital and you lay on the bed and the middle was cut out with a basin type thing full of liquid and you basically sat in it so the middle of your body was submerged then they laser you. Not very painful as I recall a sensation of something going on in your mid rift. On another occasion I had managed to pass a stone into my bladder,they then operated to pull it out of my bladder down my pipe ,for want of a better word.The first time you go for a wee after this procedure is the most painful thing I have ever experienced. Hope it works for her.After years of kidney stone problems the only real advice I have been given is drink plenty of fluids


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## Zebedee (Oct 3, 2007)

Throw a strop at the hospital Barry - after trying the pleasant approach first of course. :wink: 

If you get no decent answers when you are being nice, focus their minds a bit with a minor tantrum. It's not much to ask after all, just an explanation and a bit of preventative advice.

Dave


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Thanks again. 

alecturn1, are you still suffering now? How long after your second treatment did they return if at all?

Sounds like you had some nasty experiences. 

I have seen Michelle curled up next to a radiator in agony and its not pleasant. Worst pain ever I am led to believe.

Its also a worry when we go away as she nearly always has an episode and in 2012 when one got stuck and she was unable to pee while 4000 ft up an Italian Alp it was an eventful day I can tell you! Chasing an italian Ambulance with your wife in it through the alps was an experience.


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## tugboat (Sep 14, 2013)

I hope all goes well tomorrow, Bazza, best wishes to MrsD for a speedy and gentle resolution.


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## alecturn1 (Nov 13, 2009)

Hi Barry
I have probably 5 or 6 instances of kidney stones over the years haven't had any for about 4 or 5 years at one point I was being x rayed every 12 months for monitoring .I can sympathise with your wife being curled up in a ball cos I have been their many times.The main pain seems to be from my experience when the stone tries to leave the kidney via the tube to the bladder I even had a stone stuck in this tube one year at the routine x ray and was admitted straight away to have it removed,just writing this now reminds me of the pain it is Horrendous.


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## Boff (May 10, 2005)

Hi Barry,

my father had lithotripsy done in the early 1990s. In fact on the first ever lithotripsy device and performed by the very people who had developed it. He felt only mild sensations during the session. It was loud, though, he had to wear earmuffs throughout the session. (Could be that noise levels have been reduced with more modern devices.)

There was some pain when the fragments came out the natural way afterward, but that was nothing like the original pain from the stone.

Best Regards,
Gerhard


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## bigfrank3 (Mar 26, 2007)

Hi Barry i can only sympathies with Michele as I have suffered from kidney stones and as most people say it's worse than childbirth. Michael Crawford has had them and the radio interview he did describing what he had to put up with including trying to carch them as they passed in a little sieve at a gents urinal and other men were walking in and looking at his procedure was hilarious.

However my kidney stones are in the past and I have recently started to suffer from gout. On the piece of paper enclosed with the tablets it says "Allopurinol tablets are used for the long term, preventative treatment of gout and may be used in other conditions associated with an excess of uric acid in the body, including kidney stones and other types of kidney disease".

I hope Michele gets on OK tomorrow best wishes, Frank


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## djp30 (Jan 9, 2012)

Yes, I've had this, as descdribed by alecturn1, about 15 years ago.
At the time it was suggested that coffee, (the fresh ground/filter type) which I used to drink a lot of, was to blame.
Had a stent fitted, until I had them broken up, Reduced my coffee intake ( & increased my other fluid intake) & had no problems since.
The consultant said " nobody knows for sure what causes them".


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Thanks again.

The main thing that Michelle has a lot of is Lemon Tea. We asked about that and were told it wouldnt cause them but she drinks probably 6-8 cups a day.

I hope we will get some answers tomorrow and hopefully it will go well for her.


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## pippin (Nov 15, 2007)

My first bout of kidney stones was back in '84.

The pain of it is still etched on my mind.

The pain is worst when they are blocking/transiting the ureter 'twixt kidney and bladder.

I too utilised the (spare!) tea-strainer and caught the blasted thing on it's final escape to the light of day.

Surprisingly that last journey was pain-free especially given the sharp fragmented crystalline nature of it.

Some years later I developed a stone in my bladder.

That was zapped under a general anaesthetic.

They passed an electrode "up the pipe" and created a spark which caused an explosion of steam which shattered it into small pieces which they then flushed out.

Except that not all the bits came out - buts that's another story - too painful to be told!

I think the medical profession has not been able to identify any one cause of renal calculi - which why they are unable to give much advice on prevention.


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## rayrecrok (Nov 21, 2008)

No nothing about Kidney Stones but give our love and good wishes to err indooors and we hope she gets well soon...

Thinking of you both...

Ray and Sandra.


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## Jamsieboy (Jan 14, 2011)

Hi Barry
Had the same procedure done last June.
My stone kept popping out of my kidney and lodging in the tube then after about 8 hours or so went back into the kidney. Very painful.
Lipotripter is a piece of cake com paired to the pain of the stones.
Immediately after procedure which lasts about 45 min you go for a pee. They warn you but it is just like pissing blood. Apparently the procedures shatters the stone but in so doing it causes the kidney to bleed. Best tell the good lady or she might get a fright.
All the best to Michelle for tomorrow 
Jamsie


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Thanks again, I think she is aware she may pass blood but Ill pass that on. This kind of thing doesnt faze her and I think she copes with pain a lot better than I do. I would demand my own fleet of nurses to take home, no work or chores for a month and someone to fetch my beer during recovery.


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## Kaytutt (Feb 5, 2013)

All the best to Mrs D for tomorrow, hopefully pain free


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## tugboat (Sep 14, 2013)

See if you can collect the stones, Barry. You could make them into a necklace for her for her next Christmas present. I know you struggle for ideas in that area.

You could varnish them to prevent any nasty niffs. Damn, I'm full of good ideas this morning. Full of something, anyway! :lol:


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## Jamsieboy (Jan 14, 2011)

Come on Barry - update!!
Is Mrs D home and being looked after by the one and only?


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

*Update*

Well yes we are back at home thanks but what a waste of a day and 2 years of waiting for treatment!!! I haven't had time to get angry yet as I got called away on an emergency job on the way home and have just got back.

Basically they haven't done anything! I was not allowed in with her so cleared off for an hour or so. I returned to collect Michelle only to find out that they had not done the treatment.

Apparently after they had given her all sorts of sedatives there was some delay as the person who does the scans and zapping could not be found so the consultant ended up doing it. He struggled with the scanner thing to find the main stone they were trying to zap. It appeared once or twice but he could not get a proper fix on it.

He then claimed that the machine was a bid dodgy and they were waiting for a new one! 8O

Then he said "well your kidney isn't inflamed or anything so we will just leave it for another 3 months" Eh?

There was no chance for me to say anything as I wasn't even there but this now means the whole process starts again. 3 months to get an appointment where they may do another scan which may or may not lead to another appointment where they MAY book her in for Zapping again by which time it's probably moved or others may have formed.

It simply isn't good enough. It's an 80 mile round trip for one thing but that's not the point. Should they be doing anything like this with defective equipment anyway?

Surely they should also be performing procedures like this immediately after the initial scans and x-rays and not 3 months later as these things move and break down.

We are both completely hacked off with the entire process to be honest and have little faith in the NHS or its systems.

I suggested going back to Italy as they were brilliant there.

On a positive note the Hospital Canteen does a passable Rogan Josh for three quid.


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## Jamsieboy (Jan 14, 2011)

Jeezo what a rum deal.
Up here in the land of the celts I saw a consultant after 3 "episodes" of the stone causing me to be unwell. That was about 3 months from the start. Consultant arranged lipo zapper within 3 weeks because the stone kept popping in and out of the kidney. Very fast and super efficient.
Now I know that probably makes you feel worse but my reason for saying is to confirm that the way Mrs D was treated was shocking, especially after the length of time she has had them and her history of illness with stones.
Go get them Barry - polite but firm letter saying that you folks are less than satisfied.
Hope Mrs D has a period of ease with the stones.
Cheers


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## tugboat (Sep 14, 2013)

Sorry to hear that Bazza. Get Sandra to give you some lessons in sorting doctors out.


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Thanks

Its just a legacy of cock ups, appointments not sent out and Michelle slipping off the radar. I think at the least a stern letter or email to the head of dept is in order.


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