Kidney stone treatment involves multiple steps. These include laser stone removal via surgery, RIRS which stands for Retrograde Intrarenal Surgery, PCNL or ureteroscopy. Post-surgery care is as important as the surgery itself. In fact, we could argue that in most cases it is more important.
Most patients assume that once the stone is extracted, everything else will stop being a problem. Unfortunately, that isn’t the whole truth. Regular appointments and taking the right steps after care are a must to guarantee missing any setbacks, ensuring a full recovery, averting complications, and most importantly get rid of the chances of the stone coming back.
Why is post-operative care important?
Let’s dive into the rabbit hole of why post-operative care is that critical.
1. Keep an eye on complications that may arise post-surgery.
Even though modern techniques in kidney stone surgeries involve less cuts to the body, issues can still crop up. These could be:
– Bleeding
– Infection
– Urinary tract issues
– Problems associated with the stent
Your doctor ensures every little detail of your steady progress during healing phase is being monitored. Necessary timely adjustments for medicine can be done if need arises for any discomfort have to be done swiftly. Without wasting anytime critical. If infections are not unfortunately caught till too late, there other routes that can be extremely serious consumers and they mouth.
2. Stent Removal (If Stented)
Often, there is a temporary urethral stent placed to maintain the free flow of urine until the ureter fully heals. It is important to note that the stent must be removed within a few days to weeks as per guidance. Failure to attend to this step can result in complications such as:
– Pain
– Infection
– Encrustation or stone formation on the stent
3. Updates on Preventing Stones Reoccurrence
Prevention of stones is one of the critical reasons for attending subsequent visits. A few patients are more prone to reoccurrence due to reasons of:
– Deregulated water intake
– Elevated calcium concentration or oxalate in urine
– Metabolic disorder
– Family history
At follow-ups, the doctor will suggest;
– If stones are retrieved, conduct stone analysis
– Collect urine over a 24-hour period
– Run blood tests
– Implement dietary changes
These steps create a specific plan that minimizes the chances of new stones forming, resulting in more effective interventions.
4. Monitoring the Function of the Kidneys
After any surgical procedure for the urinary tract system, evaluating the functioning of the kidneys is vital. This entails monitoring:
– Volume of urine produced
– Creatinine content
– Ultrasound/CT scan
– Other tests completed
The health of the kidneys is crucial, more so, when these have to be done for a bigger stone or multiple surgeries.
5. Changing Food and Fluid Consumption
The dietary recommendations continue after the operation. In fact, nutritional counseling becomes even more critical after treatment. A follow-up visit with a urologist or dietitian helps in:
-Pinpointing foods that lead to stone formation.
-Improving water consumption habits.
-Controlling obesity or diabetes that aids in stone formation.
6. Modification of Lifestyle and Medication
Some patients may require the use of medication after surgery to manage pH levels in urine or calcium/uric acid concentration. Follow up visits are important to manage side effects, dosing, and overall effectiveness. With the guidance of a physician, a major lifestyle change can be implemented that lowers the risks of developing kidney stones in the future.
7. Comfort for the Patient
Also, follow-ups provide patients with mental reassurance. Monitoring the progress makes the patient feel confident; they know that a professional is managing the recovery process and supporting them every step of the way.
8. Exploring Health Issues
The formation of kidney stones cannot solely be attributed to a poor diet or dehydration. Other reasons include medical conditions such as hyperparathyroidism, gout, and abnormalities or chronic infections of the urinary system. These ailments often remain undiagnosed until an extensive workup is performed and follow-up care has been provided.
Consistent check-ups post-surgery can help in identifying:
– Hormonal Inbalances
– Inherited Metabolic Conditions
– Congenital Kidney or Urinary Tract Issues.
These can all be addressed with early detection so your doctor can treat the underlying root cause instead of managing the symptoms and avoid the chances of future stones.
9. Lifestyle Education and Long-term Care For Your Kidneys
The formation of kidney stones is usually a good indicator that the kidneys are undergoing a lot of stress. While surgery can take care of the immediate issue, equally important is educating the patient on long-term care for the kidneys. During aftercare visits, doctors put emphasis on guiding patients towards:
– Healthy drinking habits and figuring out how much and what fluids to consume
– Dieting with a focus on stone specific plans such as calcium oxalate and uric acid stones
– Exercises that are good for overall health while being gentle on the kidneys
– Monitoring diabetes and blood pressure which are vital for kidney function.
Not only does lifestyle coaching reduce the chances of a kidney stone forming, it minimizes the risk of other diseases that, in nature, are progressive and develop over time.
Closing Thoughts
The formation of kidney stones can be an incredibly painful experience, however, surgery improves the situation drastically. The real success stems from consistent follow-up care, which is crucial in ensuring good health and pre-empting recurring kidney stones.
That said, it is crucial to note that every condition varies. The patient’s health status, along with the dimensions and type of stones, their position, and other factors affect the chosen modality of treatment.
CureStone recognizes the inconvenience and discomfort caused by kidney stones. As such, we provide optimal treatment alternatives with advanced kidney stone removal techniques that are painless and effective. From the time of diagnosis to when one is recovering, our aim is to offer the most streamlined, secure, and effective experience.
Consult us without any delay if you are facing challenges related to kidney stones.
Deepanshu Gupta is a prominent Urologist and a kidney stone practitioner in the city of Delhi. Having done RIRS, an advanced laser treatment, he performs complex procedures in a surgically-minimally invasive fashion with outstanding results.
Expert Urologist: Dr. Deepanshu Gupta
- Expert in Laser Kidney Stone Treatment – Remarkable success in intricate RIRS surgeries
- Surgical Techniques – Less pain, faster healing
- Custom Health Plans – Designed according to the patient’s disease condition and health profile
- Innovative Technologies – Employs state-of-the-art laser and endoscopic tools
Set the proper path to your recovery with CureStone. Book a consultation today!