When talking about our most exhausted organs—our kidneys will never fail to appear on the list. Unlike other organs inside our body, our two pairs of kidneys have no time for rest. These two bean-shaped organs are responsible for excretion of waste materials, production of red blood cells, controlling our blood pressure and many other vital functions. If we exert additional workload and toxins to our kidneys, they may start to decline in functioning and soon enough we may start to notice some common signs and symptoms of kidney malfunction.
One of the most common diseases or disorders associated with our kidneys are kidney stones. Kidney stones occur due to formation of crystallized stones inside our kidney. There are different kinds of stones that may form inside and the cause of stone formations may vary. When the size of these stones gradually increase, that’s the time we start experiencing symptoms of kidney stones.
Are you Experiencing Pain?
The most common symptoms of kidney stones are those related to pain. Pain felt may vary but most commonly; these may start from dull sensations of pain to a sharp and shooting crescendo. It usually starts in the lower abdominal area and may progress to the groins and back.
Pain may also be felt upon urination as the stone may meddle with the normal flow of urine. When the stone is stuck in the ureter (the organ which connects our kidneys to bladder, and the organ where urine flows), we may feel a sharp and shooting type of pain.
Frequency of Urination
Frequency and urgency of urination are also common symptoms of kidney stones. As the size of the kidney stone enlarges, we may notice that our urination become more frequent. This is due to the blockage of the stone in our urinary tract, thus, when we urinate; we fail to completely expel it thus the frequency and urgency.
Cloudy, Bloody or Foul Smelling Urine
These symptoms of kidney stones indicate infection. Infection may strike due to the organisms in our urine that are not expelled. When these organisms thrive and multiply, our urinary tract becomes inflamed and forms pus. As such, when we notice our urine—we may see its cloudiness and turbidity as well as we may smell a foul odor. Blood may also be present indicating that the stone may have penetrated the walls of our kidney.
Fever and Chills Can be Related to Kidney Stones as Well
As part of the infection process, we may also start to develop fever and chills. However, these symptoms of kidney stones are vague because these may also happen in other conditions. The same is true with nausea and vomiting which may happen due to the pain felt in the presence of kidney stones.
Kidney stones can be attributed to our food and fluid intake, medications that we take, infections and inflammatory disorders, etc. The size of kidney stones may also vary from a stone as tiny as a grain of rice to a stone as huge as a ping-pong ball. Before these kidney stones become too large for you to feel the symptoms, make sure you consult your physician once you feel any of these untoward signs. Depending on the type and size of your stones, there are some common procedures of getting rid of them!
Also, change your diet ASAP – here is a complete diet guide for those having kidney stones!