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Page 42
| an infection may be present. In this case, a doctor should be contacted immediately. |
| Diagnosis |
| The majority of stones, 70 to 80 percent, are composed mainly of calcium oxalate crystals; the rest are composed of calcium phosphate salts, uric acid, struvite (magnesium, ammonium and phosphate) or the amino acid cystine. Occasionally, stones injure kidneys and reduce their function by causing infection or obstruction, but most people with stones suffer only from the pain and rather self-limiting symptoms of the stone passage. In essence, kidney stones are a common cause of disease rather than of death or renal failure. |
| A diagnosis of kidney stones is not difficult in most people. The pain of stone passage, called renal colic, has easily recognized characteristics including location in the flank, sudden onset, extreme severity, radiation down the abdomen toward the groin, association with some blood in the urine and urinary symptoms of frequency, urgency and pain. |
| Relief immediately follows the stone passage . . . sometimes almost miraculously. Stone passage itself or radiographic evidence of the stone and its attendant urinary obstruction make the diagnosis certain. |
| Treating Kidney Stones with Herbs |
| Fortunately, the vast majority of kidney stones can be treated without surgery. Most kidney stones can pass through the urinary system with plenty of water and tea (2 to 3 quarts a day) to help move the stone along. |
| Herbal Diuretics that increase the volume of urine with- |
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