Went in for litho had had ureterscopy instead - Kidney Disorders Message Board

nora01 · 07-05-2007, 11:11 AM

Hi! I haven't been on the pages in the past two weeks. Been having trouble with my dial up connection recently. Maybe its time to go to cable connection.

Well I went in for my 2nd litho on July 3rd. Had one in May that didn't break up the 4 stones enough.

I've had a stent in all this time which has been very painful at times and sometimes just a discomfort/nuissance.

When they took the xray before the surgery, my stent had dropped so much it was barely in the kidney and was mainly in the bladder. No wonder I felt like I had to pee so much!

There wer 6-7 stones/pieces all in the ureter like a little train. The largest one was holding up all the others. So instead of the litho they changed my procedure to a ureterscopy (sp). This was the first time I had this procedure and was a little nervous how much pain I was going to be in. So far I'm pleasantly suprised that the pain is not as bad as I thought. I'll have to keep the stent that they fixed or replaced (not sure which) in for a least 2 more weeks or longer.

Then I'll have to get the stones (2-3 pieces) that are still in the kidny taken care of. Maybe 3rd time will be a charm.

If I could just get this kidney clear of all stones it will be the first time in almost 9 years that I would have a clear kidney with no stones. I'm praying that happens as I'm tired of these little buggers

Does anyone know of any long term problems to the kidney/ureter/bladder from multiple stones and multipe litho surgeries?

My fear is that all of the surgeries in the past and having stones for extended period of time is damaging my kidney/ureter.

Thanks for letting me "talk"

duzford · 07-05-2007, 11:24 AM

Nora,

Glad you got reconnected and that the train was cleared out. Maybe this will make the other guys vacate the premises as well. Have you been tested to see why you get so many stones. Alas, each time we get stones we are damaging the kidney and the ureter as they are not exactly smooth. Do you or have you ever seen the damage a cat can do to furniture legs. It is not THAT extreme all the time but it can be. Tiny scratched building up time after time. There is a person on here One Kidney that lost her kidney due to stones. Ironically the doctors never seem to talk about the long term effects with us but they are not to be taken lightly. Sorry I could not give you a more encouraging post but I would rather be honest then be a doctor....opps did I say that.

Rickysmom · 07-05-2007, 01:24 PM

I am so sorry you have so many stones and had to deal with this for so long! I am still new to this and I couldn't imagine having this all the time! My heart goes out to you!

duzford · 07-06-2007, 06:30 AM

Nora, how are you feeling today?

nora01 · 07-06-2007, 08:17 AM

Hi. Feeling pretty good. It was good to hear about others telling the truth about the long term effects. I have had calcium oxalate stones when they've testing the pieces in the past. I am actually on Urocit-K (potassium citrate) to try and prevent more and for the ones I have from getting bigger.

I recently cut out all coffee, tea, and colas from my diet as I was limiting them but I think its better to cut them out. I do allow myself a cup a tea on Sundays when I visit my mom, but no more of the daily doses of caffeine. Actually feeling better since I stopped having caffeine. Sleeping better too. I do drink a Mountain Dew if I get desparate for caffeine

I find doctors don't always tell the truth or they don't give all the info. For example, the first time I had litho, they said there may be a little blood in the urine. That was a complete lie. I almost freaked out the first time I saw how much blood there was. Then there was the time I had the surgery through the back. (4 years ago) I was not prepared at all for that one. They never told me I would be awake for part of the surgery when they were inserting the tube. I also assumed that when the tube came out they would stitch up the opening, but they didn't. They let it close by it self. Meanwhile my husband (and hero) had to keep changing the bandages and packing because of all of the fluids that come out of the opening. I have sworn that I will never have this surgery every again. I don't care how big the stones get.

I have thought of going to a new urologist to see what they say, but I've been with my current doctor for almost 9 years and I do like him. He's good but there's always that doubt if I'm being told everything.

Bye