Ureteral stenting
Definition
A ureteral stent is a thin, flexible tube threaded into the ureter to help urine drain from the kidney to the bladder or to an external collection system.
Purpose
Urine is normally carried from the kidneys to the bladder via a pair of long, narrow tubes called ureters (each kidney is connected to one ureter). A ureter may become obstructed as a result of a number of conditions including kidney stones, tumors, blood clots, postsurgical swelling, or infection. A ureteral stent is placed in the ureter to restore the flow of urine to the bladder. Ureteral stents may be used in patients with active kidney infection or with diseased bladders (e.g., as a result of cancer or radiation therapy). Alternatively, ureteral stents may be used during or after urinary tract surgical procedures to provide a mold around which healing can occur, to divert the urinary flow away from areas of leakage, to manipulate kidney stones or prevent stone migration prior to treatment, or to make the ureters more easily identifiable during difficult surgical procedures. The stent may remain in place on a short-term (days to weeks) or long-term (weeks to months) basis.
Demographics
Chronic blockage of a ureter affects approximately five individuals out of every 1,000; acute blockage affects one out of every 1,000. Bilateral obstruction (blockage to both ureters) is more rare; chronic blockage affects one individual per 1,000 people, and acute blockage affects five per 10,000.
Description
The size, shape, and material of the ureteral stent to be used depends on the patient's anatomy and the reason why the stent is required. Most stents are 5–12 inches (12–30 cm) in length, and have a diameter of 0.06–0.2 inches (1.5–6 mm). One or both ends of the stent may be coiled (called a pigtail stent) to prevent it from moving out of place; an open-ended stent is better suited for patients who require temporary drainage. In some instances, one end of the stent has a thread attached to it that extends through the bladder and urethra to the outside of the body; this aids in stent removal. The stent material must be flexible, durable, non-reactive, and radiopaque (visible on an x ray).
The patient is usually placed under general anesthesia for stent insertion; this ensures the physician that the patient will remain relaxed and will not move during the procedure. A cystoscope (a thin, telescope-like instrument) is inserted into the urethra to the bladder, and the opening to the ureter to be stented is identified. In some instances, a guide wire is inserted into the ureter under the aid of a fluoroscope (an imaging device that uses x rays to visualize structures on a fluorescent screen). The guide wire provides a path for the placement of the stent, which is advanced over the wire. Once the stent is in place, the guide wire and cystoscope are removed. Patients who fail this method of ureteral stenting may have the stent placed percutaneously (through the skin), into the kidney, and subsequently into the ureter.
A stent that has an attached thread may be pulled out by a physician in an office setting. Cystoscopy may also be used to remove a stent.
Diagnosis/Preparation
A number of different technologies aid in the diagnosis of ureteral obstruction. These include:
- cystoscopy (a procedure in which a thin, tubular instrument is used to visualize the interior of the bladder)
- ultrasonography (an imaging technique that uses high-frequency sounds waves to visualize structures inside the body)
- computed tomography (an imaging technique that uses x rays to produce two-dimensional cross-sections on a viewing screen)
- pyelography (x rays taken of the urinary tract after a contrast dye has been injected into a vein or into the kidney, ureter, or bladder)
Prior to ureteral stenting, the procedure should be thoroughly explained by a medical professional. No food or drink is permitted after midnight the night before surgery. The patient wears a hospital gown during the procedure. If the stent insertion is performed with the aid of a cystoscope, the patient will assume a position that is typically used in a gynecological exam (lying on the back, with the legs flexed and supported by stirrups).
Aftercare
Stents must be periodically replaced to prevent fractures within the catheter wall or build-up of encrustation. Stent replacement is recommended approximately every six months; more often in patients who form stones.
Risks
Complications associated with ureteral stenting include:
- bleeding (usually minor and easily treated, but occasionally requiring transfusion)
- catheter migration or dislodgement (may require readjustment)
- coiling of the stent within the ureter (may cause lower abdominal pain or flank pain on urination, urinary frequency, or blood in the urine)
- introduction or worsening of infection
- penetration of adjacent organs (e.g., bowel, gallbladder, or lungs)
Normal results
Normally, a ureteral stent re-establishes the flow of urine from the kidney to the bladder. Postoperative urine flow will be monitored to ensure the stent has not been dislodged or obstructed.
Morbidity and mortality rates
Serious complications occur in approximately 4% of patients undergoing ureteral stenting, with minor complications in another 10%.
Alternatives
If a ureter is obstructed and ureteral stenting is not possible, a nephrostomy may be performed. During this procedure, a tube is placed through the skin on the patient's back, into the area of the kidney that collects urine. The tube may be connected to an external drainage bag. In other cases, the tube is connected directly from the kidney to the bladder.
Resources
BOOKS
Su, Li-Ming & R. Ernest Sosa. "Ureteroscopy and Retrograde Ureteral Access." (Chapter 97) In Campbell's Urology, 8th ed., edited by Patrick C. Walsh. Philadelphia: Elsevier Science, 2002.
ORGANIZATIONS
American Urological Association. 1120 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21201. (410) 727-1100. http://www.auanet.org .
OTHER
"Extrinsic Obstruction of the Ureter." UrologyHealth.org . [cited May 19, 2003] <http://www.urologyhealth.org/adult/index.cfm?cat=01&topic 93> .
Sutherland, Suzette E. and Martin I. Resnick. "Urinary Tract Obstruction." eMedicine. May 6, 2002 [cited May 19, 2003] http://www.emedicine.com/med/topic2782.htm .
Kathleen D. Wright, R.N. Stephanie Dionne Sherk
WHO PERFORMS THE PROCEDURE AND WHERE IS IT PERFORMED?
Ureteral stenting is typically performed in a hospital by an interventional radiologist (a physician who specializes in the treatment of medical disorders using specialized imaging techniques) or a urologist (a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the urinary tract and genital organs).
QUESTIONS TO ASK THE DOCTOR
- Why is ureteral stenting recommended?
- What diagnostic tests will be performed prior to the stenting procedure?
- What technique will be used to place the stent?
- What type of stent will be used, and when will it be removed?
- Are there any alternatives to ureteral stenting?
Wish me luck I hope to give a stellar report post removal! PS I have tried heat, ice, major pain meds and muscle relaxers! I believe the muscle relaxer worked the best. In my situation I believe the pain/ colic in my kidney and ureter that I have now are muscle spasms as they are very sharp and very frequent pre and post void.
Thank you
My experience has been that the Dr. has not been very infromative and unless I have asked about something specifically, it has not been addressed.
My stone started on 2/14/08. I had Lithotripsy done in March. The Dr. scheduled me for Lithotripsy again in April then told me 2 days before at the checkup that it was too soon to have Litho done again. When I asked why he had scheduled me again for Litho he didn't say anything.
On 4/21 I had the Cysto/Laser/Stent done. My followup appointment is today so we'll see where things go from here.
I'll try to update the forum. Since the procedure on 4/21 I have only passed one fragment.
That was an experience I'll never forget. The procedure was fairly quick and only about 3 bouts of pain that made me raise up off the table.
About a half hour after the stent was out I started getting cramps like I had when the stent was first in which I believe are bladder spasms.
My wife called the urologist and asked for a detrol order to be phoned to the pharmacy. About an hour latter the nurse from the office called and said the Dr. thinks you'll be fine and isn't going to call the order in. I replied that it was easy for him to say that and hung up.
The next call was to my primary doctor's office and left a message with the answering service. A while later he called back and agreed to call in the order.
I finally got a Detrol LA 4mg capsule around 6:45pm and by 9pm my cramps/spasms where gone.
Moral of the story: Make sure you have a prescription for DETROL LA 4MG when you leave from surgery and when you leave from the stent removal. The PHENAZOPYRID 200MG TAB are good for any irritation of your urinary system so you should be sure to ask for them as well for after your surgery and stent removal.
Because of the arrogance of my FORMER urologist I was in the worst pain of my life from 4:15 to 9:00 pm.
I changed my two month followup appointment to another Dr. in the group today.
Good luck to anybody else who has to go through the procedure.
Last night I accidently tugged on the string attached to the stent when wiping, on now it is most difficult to sit. The string is out about 4� now. Could I have dislodged the stent and pulled it into my bladder? I also do not seem to be passing as much urine now.
Yesterday, the pain from the stent was unbelievable. It is not so bad now, but my kidney pain is terrible. I am also nauseous.
I called the dr on duty and he tells me to stop drinking so much fluid� and not to worry about the stent. I do not think I should be feeling a �pokie� pain when I sit down.
THanks
This is my 2nd or 3rd stent I have had. They told me I'd have it 14 days and then called and said 4+ weeks, I just cried... they pain has subcided a bit but I am still taking pain killers. I agree these things hurt worse than stones... It is like a pinching pain sometimes.
I have had 5 surgeries since January and I think the worst part is the stent.
I don't remember what the pain was like last time it was removed but I still can't wait to get it out. It is very hard to do much of anything. I had a PNL for a huge stone, then a uretoscopy, then Lithotripsy and because of the scar tissue there was a narrowing in the ureter they had to enlarge. They say I might have to have it again I sure hope not. Good luck everyone
I am in excruciating pain and he won't prescribe anything but Detrol, because I am already in pain treatment through the same University hospital system. Even though the pharmacologist told me, and him that I needed something stronger than Vicodin. I live in pain everyday, and I deal with it. Anything on top of the pain is just too much for me to emotionally and physically handle.
It took everything in me to keep myself from crying in front of him. I waited until they brought my car up and then could barely drive through the tears. I've never been so angry in my life that I had to deal with this man's condescension over my pain and need for proper medication.
Anyone who is going in for a stent should be given whatever they need for pain, as a doctor has no way to judge my pain just because "I look better" than before he put the stone in... Duh, I have been sleeping, laying on my porch and put on a little makeup before my appointment.
Angry is the only way to describe my experience. And I have litho scheduled for this coming Tuesday with him. I may refuse surgery if he will not prescribe pain medication that matched my tolerance level. I would rather wait another week and go to someone else in his practice.
I am in excruciating pain and he won't prescribe anything but Detrol, because I am already in pain treatment through the same University hospital system. Even though the pharmacologist told me, and him that I needed something stronger than Vicodin. I live in pain everyday, and I deal with it. Anything on top of the pain is just too much for me to emotionally and physically handle.
It took everything in me to keep myself from crying in front of him. I waited until they brought my car up and then could barely drive through the tears. I've never been so angry in my life that I had to deal with this man's condescension over my pain and need for proper medication.
Anyone who is going in for a stent should be given whatever they need for pain, as a doctor has no way to judge my pain just because "I look better" than before he put the stone in... Duh, I have been sleeping, laying on my porch and put on a little makeup before my appointment.
Angry is the only way to describe my experience. And I have litho scheduled for this coming Tuesday with him. I may refuse surgery if he will not prescribe pain medication that matched my tolerance level. I would rather wait another week and go to someone else in his practice.
Last year they found an 8mm stone on the left and a 14 x 28mm stone on the right. Had 2 lithos done in Jan and one in May. No problems until June, 1st fragment of stone passed, left side, 2nd one followed 3 weeks later. Emergency room visits for both. Love the "cocktails". They wouldn't let me take any home just in case it happened again. Well it did, last week. A stent was put in. Doc said I'd be ready to go to San Deigo on a planned resort vacation after it was done. What a joke! I was in the hopsital for 2 1/2 days. Voiding was uncontrollable at first. Kept the nurses busy, lots of pain, (still lots of pain)sitting still not moving a muscle was great,followed by a continuous (every 4 hours, 24/7) dose of percocet, if you get past the painful bladder spasms and the need to urinate NOW.... RIGHT NOW! ALL THE TIME, and lets not forget the burning at the end of voiding...... I too am a school teacher. walking is a joke, hurts like a large tug of war is going on between the bladder and kidney. Every step I take jars my insides and creates a sharp pain. I feel everyone's frustration AND pain. The removal is painful as well, I was told. Short term sharp pain as it is removed, a few days of aching afterwards. I will be rethinking the stent thing before I allow it to be done again. Surely there is another way. Anyone who can get a Urologist to answer any of these queries, you get the prize! By the way, the people who are having problems with getting pain meds, appropriate pain meds, your Dr. is required and mandated by law to do pain management stuff as part of his patient services. Don't let them treat you otherwise. If you are not happy with the service, don't be afraid to speak up about it.
after 8 xrays finally got diagnosed with 4mm kidney stone. had op last week to remove kidney stone. woke up and was told kidney stone alot bigger than thought and couldnt be removed so put in a stent instead. not sure what happens to kidney stone? defenetly worst pain experienced in life so far, far far wose than childbirth and alot worse than a kidney stone.
so now, thanks to doctor, i still have kidney stone, got excruciating pain in right kidney again, cant walk properly thanks to pain down below, very constipated, weeing almost constantly what looks like just blood, had an allergic reaction to pain killers, now got an infection in kidney as well. wake up during the night in tears as the pain killers wear off. cant work as i am a child carer and am in no fit state.
my honest advice is try everything else before a stent. it hurts so so much and i will be making sure they put me to sleep when they remove it and i will never have one again if i can choose. i think having a stent should not be a day operation, you should be monitered for a few days in hospital. the service i recieved from nurses was appaling. originally sent home with no painkillers. almost as soon as i woke up they said good bye and now ive had this infection brewing all weekend.
believe me having a kidney stone is bliss compared to stent... especially a kidney stone and stent.
i feel very sorry for anyone going through this while pregnant and unable to take strong painkillers.
drinking water does help!!!....until you have to urinate!
after 8 xrays finally got diagnosed with 4mm kidney stone. had op last week to remove kidney stone. woke up and was told kidney stone alot bigger than thought and couldnt be removed so put in a stent instead. not sure what happens to kidney stone? defenetly worst pain experienced in life so far, far far wose than childbirth and alot worse than a kidney stone.
so now, thanks to doctor, i still have kidney stone, got excruciating pain in right kidney again, cant walk properly thanks to pain down below, very constipated, weeing almost constantly what looks like just blood, had an allergic reaction to pain killers, now got an infection in kidney as well. wake up during the night in tears as the pain killers wear off. cant work as i am a child carer and am in no fit state.
my honest advice is try everything else before a stent. it hurts so so much and i will be making sure they put me to sleep when they remove it and i will never have one again if i can choose. i think having a stent should not be a day operation, you should be monitered for a few days in hospital. the service i recieved from nurses was appaling. originally sent home with no painkillers. almost as soon as i woke up they said good bye and now ive had this infection brewing all weekend.
believe me having a kidney stone is bliss compared to stent... especially a kidney stone and stent.
i feel very sorry for anyone going through this while pregnant and unable to take strong painkillers.
drinking water does help!!!....until you have to urinate!
This was my 17th surgery I have had in my life and the post-op was the worst by far. I have had 3 C-sections and I have an incredible threshold for pain ( I had an ectopic pregnancy and burst my fallopian tube. It happened in the morning and I didn't agree to go to the hospital until late that night because I thought I was having a bad period) So I am no wimp.
I am very disappointed because I thought this was supposed to cure my constant UTI's. Infact I have had cloudy urine and pain like I have a UTI since the surgery. I am living on the pain pills. I told my husband that I thank God I do not have an addictive personality because I would have to go into rehab. I take at least one hyrdocodone each day if not a few to be able to function without living on the toilet.
The doctor and I are going to have a come to Jesus meeting. I would prefer to live on antibiotic than go through this again. I am looking into alternative medicine (accupunture) because I can't experience this pain any longer.
The stent certainly helped relieve some of the pain, but I was surprised at how strong and how frequently the urge to urinate was. I was in the restroom every 15-20 minutes all day, every day.
I'm reading a lot of horror stories about stents, and I certainly hope I'm not in the minority. My stent was uncomfortable but not really all that painful. I was sore from all the work that was being done, but I could manage it with pain pills. In fact, the day I had the stones removed (with the stent left in) I was in the back yard pushing my kids on the swing.
The stent removal was probably the worst for me. It was intense, but at least it didn't take long (< 1 min). I remember sweating profusely through it. I soaked my clothes and the table I was on. I'll bet I walked out five pounds lighter :o)
I think I have been fortunate to have one of the best surgeons in the country for this type of thing. From what I understand, he developed the procedure where they use a laser to break up the stones and remove the smaller pieces manually. Here's the URL to the local news story:
http://wcco.com/health/kidney.stones.Patrick.2.372643.html
At a follow-up appointment, I learned that I have several more stones that need to be removed. I'll be scheduling the surgery for sometime in the next few weeks. I trust the doctor completely, and I am not worried about the stent at all. I'm not looking forward to the stent removal, but I'd take that any day over the possibility of repeating what happened in June.
Anyway, I thought I would present a semi-positive experience with stents so that people reading this know that not every experience is bad.
For those of you that are experiencing the awful pain from kidney stones, infections, stents, etc., my heart goes out to you. I'll just say that Jesus is there with you through the whole thing. Put your trust in him, and he will take care of you.
I have a laproscopic procedure done a month ago and since then have a leakage problem. After that had a stent put in on the right ureter as they found a hole in there. After putting the stent I was still leaking. Then then put a naphrostomy tube in and still I am leaking. Right now I have a catheder and the naphrostomy tube and I am still leaking. Drs cant undetstand why? So tomorrow I am going in again with some imaging they want to do and then decide to do a reconstructive surgery. can u please explain as to what are the possibilities of this sort of a problem. All this is beyond my understading all I know is I am going thr hell...... Any input would be great.......
First thank you all for your postings. I'm so glad I found this site prior to having a stent put in.
I woke up a few weeks ago with excriciating pain on my left side. First passed it off as gas until the spasms started and I couldn't move. My husband rushed me to the hospital where it was dicovered I had a 3mm stone in my left ureter closest to the kidney. I was sent home with a bunch of pain killers and told to drink lots of water. If the pain wasn't better after a few days to see a Urologist.
A week later I went to see the recommended urologist. After the XRay, I was told that I had a 5mm stone, and it has not moved at all. They recommended Lithroscopy to blast the stone. Two days later I had the procedure.
Over the next few days I passed lots of fragments with pain off and on. The pain meds kept it under control for the most part. Ten days after the procedure, I started experiencing extreme pain again and visited the Urologist (for the follow-up).
After another XRay they said that there was still a large fragment, around 3mm, stuck in the narrowest part of my ureter close to my bladder. Because of the location, they couldn't do Lithroscopy again and suggested a stent instead. I was told it was a simple procedure and they mentioned nothing about pain. The doctor also prescribed Flomax, .4mg to be taken every night. It was said to make the stone passage easier.
Note that I too am no stranger to pain. After 18 surgeries related to a brain tumor and a very large fibrod, I've been on every pain medication known to man and experienced every pain imagineable! The last thing I need is more of it.
As a result of reading this, I'm delaying the stint insertion as indefinitly and hopefully the stone will pass on its own.
Thanks again,
Lucy.
On a whole the stenting is not too bad id rather that any day to renal colic....
I had two lithotripsy surgeries for the first one alone and in between the two a ureteral stent. The stone was located near my kidney.
When I went for surgery two days ago for the current stent and the laser type lithotripsy through the cytoscope my doctor discovered that the stone must have dislodged when he drained my bladder before he started the surgery.
I had no pain at all when the first stent was removed but it was moments after the second lithotripsy. I was awake but maybe there was some pain killer given through my IV.
I think ureteral stent insertions should require at least 1 day as an impatient. For the first time it's scary. You don't know if the pain you are having is normal and the bloody urine can make you think something is seriously wrong.
I have a very competent doctor and know I am in good hands so far but there has to be a better way. The pain is so menacing when I urinate. I get very nervous when I have to go. I feel like a little kid again. I have to talk to myself to get throug it. Sometimes if you tense up your abdomen, like when you are mid way through a sit-up,it helps but sometimes it doesn't. I think the more water you have to pee the easier it is.
Yes I have had many stents and they are unbelievably painful to say the least. I do not do Lithortiposys any more as they left so much dust in my kidneys (taht turned to stones)that I am now FILLED with stones!The pain is very tough but please ALL do not let this stop you as you surely DO NOT want to loose a kidney! Keep in mind THAT THE STENTS WILL BE REMOVED IT'S JUST A MATTER OF TIME! It is much better than loss of a kidney or sepsis. The blood, clots, pain & tiredness taht come with the stents ARE REAL! I guess I am lucky that my Doc's know the pain is unbearable and keep me highly medicated. There is a great site to go to for stone formers it can be found at
www.cystinuria.org
On the left is a Community tab, click on Cystinuria forums, it really is a wonderful site for stone formers. You will find many caring people here including Doctors to help you. I do not have Cystinuria but I can not tell you all how much the people on this site have helped me! A stone is a stone!
My right stent has been in since Nov.11.2008 it will come out next Thursday do not ask me why so long. I just had a left stent removed 6 weeks ago and believe it or not I now have another large stone passing again in the left!!!
I will check back on post ALL hang in there. My thoughts are with you ALL for a better New Year!! God Bless!!
Carol X's 30 Years of Stones!!
I thought the removal was not bad. I was surprised that I experienced the same pain that I had when the stent was in place for the next two days.
It is five days after stent removal and I still have low grade pain and tiredness. I am curious how long the low grade pain lasts?
I feel for everyone going through this. I have had a few bout with stones, but this last one a 4mm in the right kidney had to be removed and a stent put in for a week. It was extremely painful the day they put it in an continued until they took it out. The pain when I voided radiated from the kidney to the bladder...I hated the thought of even using the bathroom and waited as long as possible to pee. Removal wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. But it has been 2 weeks since the removal of the stent and I am still out of work due to being exhausted and if I do to much the pain comes back. I am completely frustrated. Has anyone else every had pain for this long after the removal of the stent?? Hope everyone has a Happy Holiday! And a much better New Year! God be with you all through this difficult time!
Chris
When that got pulled out I screamed this really inhuman high pitched yell. I am sure the lobby heard it.
Now its out but the pain goes on just as bad as before the stent went in. Relaxing in a warm bath with pain meds helps. Also I havent had a decent bowel movement since i got this stone agony over a week ago. Today I tried to go and strained to hard,what a mistake that was. I was in agony for over an hour from just trying to take a dump. So here I am in bed typing this.
Rob
Following a routine visit to my PCP at the end of 5 weeks following surgery, he became concerned because I had pressure near the surgery site and it was warm to the touch. It didn't really hurt ... it was uncomfortable. He consulted my urologist and they got me in for a CAT Scan. They found I had sprung a leak in my kidney (a Urinoma). My Urologist admitted me to the hospital for an overnight stay (now at the end of 6 weeks following surgery) and inserted a stent. The first few days after the stent placement, I seemed pretty good. I used the pain meds cautiously and only mildly suffered.
I was scheduled to go on a Christmas trip which my Doctor said would be OK provided I continued my care. During the trip I started experiencing the terrible urges to urinate and burning upon completion. The only thing that would take the edge off was my pain meds (Oxycodone). I had a one week prescription that I stretched the use to three weeks. I even tried taking Advil and Tylonel to ease the urge. I decided the best way to get through it is to gut it out. I did call my Doctor upon my return on Monday and he prescribed Vesicare to relax the bladder. It hasn't helped much. Every time I stand up, I have to go. When I sit down I feel the darn thing and have to hold my breath.
I am now two months after my surgery. I am getting a bit down over it all. I feel like I am only partially functional at work (and sometimes not at all). I had a Cat Scan this morning, but won't get the results till next Thursday. Hopefully the stent will be removed then. I am afraid to ask for more pain meds. My doctors are wonderful and I am sure they would give them to me ... but I am afraid of becoming addicted. Oh well ... this has given me a good reason to get a lot of reading in. It is about the only thing I can do without having to go!
Best wishes to all. Just look at this as a character builder.
So my advice is to try all options to pass the stone if its small enough. Drink lots of lemonade and try the lemon juice/olive oil cocktail and let me know if it works.. If you have to have it surgically removed plan for at least 4-5 days recovery before going back to work. Drink lots of water, like at least 3-4 liters a day, and have someone to take care of you because you're not going to want to do anything. Ask your doctor to use stents that can be pulled out with strings because from what I hear the cystoscopy is a lot more painful. Good luck.
I called doctor again and begged nurse to have doctor take out stents. Well my wish was granted today--and let me tell you it was a blessing after the fact, as the procedure was terrible--no local was given(even though I was under the impression one was to be given).
Well the relief lasted about 2 hours and now I am back to the same old same old. The major pain is gone but the spasms are killing me. Got lots of good info from this site in regards to meds and I know there is someone worse off then me, not that makes me feel better. I wish you all the best, and I hope I never have to go through this again.
Thank God I am not working at this time as I could never had survived going to work. Changing diet to see if it makes a difference in the stone situation as it seems I get one every 2 years--usually in the winter after not drinking enough all summer it seems. Take care everyone and thanks for letting me vent!
Be sure to let your doctors know of your experience. They need this informatin to improve this proceedure in the future.
Also, learned here some useful techniques to deal with stent pain such as wearing loose clothing, drinking plenty of water, tightening your stomach when voiding, not lying down on your stent side, stool softener, etc. And the pain should moderate with time.... I hope.
This is a character building experience. Good luck.
All the best through your experience. Nona
! I fully sympathise with all of you who have and have had stents because its hurts worse than the kidney pain itself. id rather have kidney pain then feela stent!
Two weeks later I had lithroscopy supposedly for a 13mm still in the left kidney but instead the urologist zapped a 6 mm stone in the ureter. The nurse gave me demerol in the same hip being lasered. BG MISTAKE. The pain was excrusiating. It felt like someone hit me with a 2 x 4 hundreds of times every minute. The urologist used 250 mg demerol to complete the lithroscopy. The pain continued not only in the effected area but also from severe muscle ache from straining during the treatment.
The stent still bothers me after three weeks.
I went on search for alternatives and found cornsilk, hydrangea, and marshmallow. The cornsilk lines the ureter and urinary tract to help pass the stone. It's like a kidney stone slip and slide.
The hydrangea helps break up the stone.
the marshmallow helps in circulation issues.
Drink a gallon of purified water every day, sipping all day, not chugging a quart at a time.
No sugar, no high fructose, no caffeine, no red meat.
Do this and you wont ever need a urologist.
Think about it... demerol, toradol, morphine, antibiotics, antispamatics, and other drugs are all very damaging to the kidney.
I'm off all pain meds for one week solid now. The stent is still in and two stones smaller than the urologist estimated are sitting stuck at the edge of the stent about an inch apart.
This stent is out of here as soon as I have my lithroscopy follow up.
I do not believe a word this Dr says. Of course he tells me that I can resume my activities and every thing will be okay. Except a few poeople complain of a "little urgency" All I can say is F that! I havn't been back to work, I can't be active, I really can not do anything.
It feels like the worst bladder infection in my life. I googled stent problems and now I see that this is common. I'd like to stick a stent in that Dr and see how his "little urgency" feels!
I do not believe a word this Dr says. Of course he tells me that I can resume my activities and every thing will be okay. Except a few poeople complain of a "little urgency" All I can say is F that! I havn't been back to work, I can't be active, I really can not do anything.
It feels like the worst bladder infection in my life. I googled stent problems and now I see that this is common. I'd like to stick a stent in that Dr and see how his "little urgency" feels!
I do not believe a word this Dr says. Of course he tells me that I can resume my activities and every thing will be okay. Except a few poeople complain of a "little urgency" All I can say is F that! I havn't been back to work, I can't be active, I really can not do anything.
It feels like the worst bladder infection in my life. I googled stent problems and now I see that this is common. I'd like to stick a stent in that Dr and see how his "little urgency" feels!
Never in my 39 years of life have I experienced such pain and discomfort! While the ditropan does help with the bladder spasms, the Darvocet did not even begin to help with pain relief!!
Post-op I returned home to intense burning during urination, bloody, clotted urine, and a pain that was worse than ever. It's difficult to find a comfortable position to sit, sleep or even lay down and my doctors haven't been much help.
A midnight call to the GU resident resulted in me being told that "everything you're telling me is normal so you'll have to just deal with it." Wow...wtf!???? I was even told that were I to go to the ER that I would be seen by this same resident and discharged....*sigh*
A call into the urologist's office got me some Vicodin which barely takes the edge off the pain. I saw my urologist yesterday and he was perplexed when I described my symptoms and tried to explain that I feel worse off now than before. He insisted that the stent "was properly placed and bypasses the kidney stone so there is no reason for you to be in pain at all." The office visit ended with me being scheduled for Litho on 06/18/09 (tomorrow).
In short I'd like to say that I not only agree with most everything said here but can relate to it. I don't know what the problem is with most of our physicians not understanding or wanting to help with our pain and discomfort but I really wish that would change.
I'm not looking forward to the surgery or the stent removal but am wiling to go through it in an attempt to get this done and over with. My concern, though, is that the fragments could remain and act as seed material for further stones - can anyone comment on this please?
I think that as a pre-requisite for the position of a urologist, each physician needs to have had kidney stones and had the placement of a stent. Were that the case, I firmly believe their dismissive attitude would change...drastically.
Good luck to everyone.
Colby
This has happened to me 7 times since 06/04/09 - it's not consistent but when it hits.....OMG! Has anyone experienced this type of onset before? I brought it up to my doctor who didn't seem to have a clue about it.
Thanks in advance,
Colby
I was released from the hospital after 10 days and told by my urologist to schedule a stent placement when I got home. Being on hard hitting pain meds in the hospital, I didn't bother to ask any questions, came home, and made my appointment.
When I called for my appointment, the nurse told me I would have "conscious sedation", which is what I was also told for the nephrostomy - worst pain I have ever felt in my life, especially while someone is standing over you saying " you may feel a little pinch". This sent me into a panic, not wanting to go through that sort of pain again. I was given NO information about what to expect, what complications may be, if any pain meds would be given, that these things weren't permanent...
I have now sat up till 5 am in the morning, due at the hospital at 7:30am. I am cancelling my appointment until I can get more information. I'm not happy about sitting longer with this bag sticking out of my back, but I'm also not willing to subject myself to more needless torture.
Thoughts and prayers for all of you.
Now I can actually go and cut the grass, which is growing like a weed. Yippee.
In my internet search I also found that “The implanting physician is responsible for informing the patient of the requirements, consequences, and complications associated with stent placement. Failure to do so has obvious management and potential mediocLEGAL implications.” PERHAPS WE SHOULD EXPLAIN THIS TO OUR DOCTORS!
This site is wonderful, but I feel the AFTERCARE management section should include some of the information some of the other User Contributors have offered as well as: 1) That patients should continually sip water not gulp down sporadically. 2) To monitor the urine output/flow. Not Enough Input-No Output-Say Hi to UTI! 3) Stent caused symptoms like bladder irritation causing frequency and urination discomfort and leakage. 4) Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) due to the implanted stent. 5) Should the stent pass on it’s own the office will want to see it. **Though once the stent/s are removed all symptoms resolve almost immediately.
I also liked the description of the ureteral stent as being about the same size as a plastic coffee swizzle stick and about 10-12 inches depending on the type used due to the size of your particular ureter/s.
Did I mention I LOVE THIS SITE! Thank YOU all for sharing and hopefully others can come here and learn more about what is happening to them before it happens to them! It is not often that we can honestly say I FEEL YOUR PAIN! To bad we can not bottle it and share. = (...)
Take care, Alice
Well, that morning I chickened out, and opted to not go to the appointment for stent placement, and called my urologist instead. We discussed at that time that ureter reconstruction was more than likely where I would end up, so it was agreed that 6 weeks later, we would proceed with the surgery. About 4 days after that appointment, the nephrostomy began to leak, filling my pelvis with fluid, and making the decision for me that the reconstruction surgery had to occur immediately.
I woke up from this surgery to be in the absolute worst pain of my life. I still had the nephrostomy, and added a stent to my newly replaced left ureter, as well as a foley catheter and a surgical drain from my stomach. As days progressed, I felt much better, with some pretty bad pain in my groin - I am assuming due to the stent. After a month in the hospital, I finally made it home, still with a foley, still with a stent, and still with a nephrostomy. I was able to leave my house yesterday for the first time to attend an open house for my 8 year old's school. This felt GREAT to be able to leave the house, but after about 30 minutes, had to come home and hit pain meds.
Hopefully, I lose the foley and nephrostomy on Monday. Both of these procederes have caused me a little anxiety, along with the idea of getting this stent removed in another 3 weeks. At least it will (should) be over for me then.
I can say that the stent pain I have has gradually gotten better. I have actually been able to go one day wothout pain meds. I don't know what it will be like when the foley is removed and I have to pee on my own, but hopefully it won't be to horrible.
Thank you so much to all of you that have posted. I received enough insight from your posts to no longer fear the unknown. Good luck to you all!!
I, too, am going through the burning at the end of voiding (which is how I found your post here), and the need to go NOW is horrible. I am getting my stent out in a week or so. But please, please, if they tell you you need the stent, DO IT. The alternative is worse. I had a kidney stone move and block the urethra TOTALLY. The poisons built up in the kidney, and moved to the bloodstream. The scary thing is that there was no pain, nothing I could put my finger on as a problem other than that things "weren't right." My husband finally called an ambulance after I spent a day at home in bed, and was unable to decide anything (like, "Are you hungry?" "I dunno....") By the time I got to the hospital, the infection had moved into my bloodstream, and I was very close to death. I spent over 2 weeks in the hospital as they tried to get me over it. They succeeded (naturally -- I'm writing this, right?), and I have now gone through 3 rounds of lipotripsy (sp?) to blast those stones into little bits that I can pass. So yeah, I'm dealing with the burning, looking forward to the removal of the stent, but also glad to be alive to complain about the burning!
Thank god I found this website! I'm glad to hear everyone else is experiencing the same things I am.
I'm 25 and 27 weeks pregnant with a stent in my right side. I am in the most unbearable pain I've ever experienced. I went into the hospital with right flank pain Aug 25 and they couldn't find any stones but apparently my baby is blocking my kidney, so therefor they had to place a stent. I have two words.... I'm miserable!!! I can't do anything for myself, I can't walk more than 2 seconds and I'm in constant pain. Like everyone else my doctor told me that it was only going to be uncomfortable.... Ha ha ya right... I still have blood (lots) in my urine and occasionally have clots, its so painful wen I urinate that I literally grab something and squeeze for dear life. I'm crying all the time. Its horrible!!!! I have decided that I'm not waiting till my babys born to get it removed I'm going this week to get it out. I would rather have the pain in my flank than go through this 24/7.... I wish all of u good luck and hope ur pain eases.
I am on the 2nd doctor in the group cause the first one was a jerk. This guy is very informative, but said nothing about pain from the stent. He did not say it would be staying though. He said it would be to drain the kidney cause it is full and not going anywhere.
He did talk about a tube from the back with a bag to see if the kidney was functioning at all before he would take the kidney out.
The first guy said it would be okay to leave it in even if it didn't work as long as I was having no pain.
This guy said it should not stay in cause it could cause secondary infection and cause more problems.
We have been told by my husbands MS doctors that "Medicine is not an exact science" YA THINK????
I do not want to be one of "DR HOUSE's" patients believe me.
Thank you all for your time and honesty. I do want to be an informed patient.
I pray for peace and a pain free life for you all.
alice
It is now 6 years later, and after thousands of dollars, they have still not found my parathyroid, but we are still looking. The main point of this post, is, any women out there that are pregnant and just started getting kidney stones, or women that have already had children, but started having kidney stones while pregnant, please go have your calcium levels checked! At one point mine was as high as 12.5, and I think the norm is 3.5-5.0.
I hope this helps even just one person so they don't have to go through having kidney stones for the rest of their lives!
Good luck to everyone. I get my stent out on Monday, and I can't wait! I don't care how bad it hurts, at this point, nothing really hurts that bad anymore anyway!!!
p.s. The BEST PART of this… my son turned 6 yrs old on August 27th and is totally healthy, happy and normal!!! :)
I'm heartily fed up with the whole thing. I've lost 3 months of being able to walk and rumble with the kids. 20 years ago I guess they'd open me up, remove the stones and sew the holes up, with maybe 2 weeks of downtime. Now days, I get 3 months of downtime.
Good luck to everyone else with stones. I'll post back and let you know how it goes.
Robbie (New Zealand)
1. Can sting a bit when they put the anesthetic jelly in your pipe (probably the worst bit);
2. The cytoscope moving up to your bladder is fine and whilst a bit uncomfortable does not hurt;
3. It starts to get more uncomfortable as the cytoscope starts to break through to the bladder but then it settles down very suddenly.
4. At this point you just feel like you need to urinate and it can be mildly uncomfortable if they have to move or rotate the cytoscope to find the stent.
5. Once the end of the stent was grasped by a wire passed through the cytoscope I was told to take a deep breath and then out it all comes - very quickly, and didn't feel any pull or sensitivity in the kidney. The pulling out really is that quick and painless, basically if you blink you'll miss it.
6. Afterwards there was burning and stinging when urinating, a little blood and some kidney pain, but all pretty tolerable/manageable.
Hope this helps anyone worrying about getting the stent pulled out.
barely letting any urine flow. I really felt better with the kidney stone stuck Than i do with this stent. :/
I had a sound waves kidney stone removal operation with a sent inserted on 12/17/09. Bottom line, I had strong pain upon urination, and as is my nature, bit the lip and went with it; thereater, laid in bed most of time and minimized the Percoset intake . Initially, I requested a smaller dose of Percoset due to prior surgical experiences I don't do well with a strong doses. I was prescribed 325mg. The first dose I cut the tablet in half and pain was some what tolerable; thereafter, I decided to take the full dosage with limit on intake frequency. Three days later, I interchanged with Tylenol ( two 550mg tablets) and generally felt okay.
Today, is 7 days later and Christmas Eve, since the operation & stent placement, feel much better, slight pain upon urination. Haven't taken a dose of Percoset in 24 hours just Tylenol.
I want to assure you that each of us have varied experieneces and yours will be different. Just be prepared, ask questions, take pain medications, rest alot, intake water and take time off.
I will see my doctor on 12/29 and will udpate.
Stents are painful. Readers of this website should not necessarily make a decision based solely on these comments. My first stent didn't cause much pain at all. The second one caused a ton of pain after they removed it - cramps and spasms for an entire day that was worse than the kidneystone itself! My current one - well, lots of blood, lots of flank pain during urination, kidney and bladder spasms, and I'm anticipating some pain after removal. But I have meds.
So yeah, you need pain medication during and after the stent. But every person's experience will be different. Heck, every one of my experiences have been different. If the doctors recommend a stent, I wouldn't turn it away. Just be aware that it's not a cakewalk and that you need adequate pain management.
Know what you are all going through as I had a stent put in four weeks ago and it is due to be removed the week after next. This cannot come soon enough as I feel my life has changed for the worse as I have not really been able to do my normal day to day routine things.
I also like a few people did leave the hospital without any advise with what to expect. Contacted the Doctor on numerous occasions and have spent a fortune on prescriptions for things that did not make any difference to the pain and suffering that I have been going through over the past four weeks.
Tomorrow after the Christmas break I am finally going back to work and not looking forward to it as cannot cope with the pain, so lets see how it goes.
Each of the 3 stents that I have had were painful, but this one is not as bad as the other ones. The enablex has helped significantly.
Hope this helps someone out there as you have helped me.
God bless you all with better health this new year!
Ann, I am happy to hear that you had a stone rather than a tumor. I had to stay home from work during my entire ordeal. I drive heavy machinery for a living and there is no way I could keep stopping to void every 5 minutes. I think the most frustrating thing about the stent is the false feeling that you have to go all the time. I couldn't even sleep because of it. I take my hat off to you for going to work with that thing in you. I wish you the best and hope for a quick recovery for you. God bless.
It took me weeks to find the right combination of medication. I take Vesicare in the morning along with Pyridium and Vicodin (3-4 times a day). The dr. said the pyridium "doesn't do anything" but for me has done WONDERS. I can function at work, although I go to pee a few times an hour, and i get bad flank pain during the day but i can use a heating pad and more pain meds to help. I suggest you get on your doctor about pain meds. I don't care if i have to call once a week...if i have to have this thing in until the end of January, i NEED something strong. I think its a joke that a LOT of these urologists believe that Tylenol would be enough for the pain. It is NOT!
This latest stone was in my R kidney, another 4mm, on Thanksgiving 2009. Got a shot of dilaudid/phenigren, oxycodone pills for pain, sent on my way. Three days before Xmas 2009, I go to hospital again, receive demorol (sp?) shot, hydroxodone for a 6mm stone in my R kidney. Go to uroloist, who says the 6mm isn't moving so they'll have to go in and get it. Oh yeah, and another one in my L kidney, unbeknownst to me, that was 7mm and still in the kidney. They could do the sonic blast thing on that one. Went in, had the surgery (was totally knocked out for it), got a stent in the R kidney. The stent hurt worse than the stone did! I spent a week barely moving, barely eating, in pain every time I urinated, and heavily doped up on Percocet and muscle relaxers. Missed 3 weeks of work overall due to these nasty little things (I work as a corrections officer and we can't go into work when on any type of narcotic). Got the stent out today, one week after surgery, and here go those spasms again! My bladder is spasming, as well as the R kidney. I just took 2 percocets and the pain is gradually subsiding. Gosh, I sure jope this isn't going to be a recurrent theme in my life. This pain is unbearable, which I'm sure all of you know. I have never in my 36 years on this planet felt such agony as I have in the last few weeks.
I have been diagnosed with a 9mm stone in my right ureter "close to the VUJ" whatever that is.
I am scheduled to have a stent inserted next Tuesday 19 Jan 2010 as the first stage in the stone removal. I understand that at a later date, they will go in with some instrument to break the stone up.
It sounds as though I am in for a rough ride. It looks like almost everyone has had considerable pain and discomfort.
I have had stones before. I have passed a couple of small ones with just short sharp pain and I have also had larger ones surgically removed. This is the first time that they have had to use a stent however.
I look forward to following this forum.
I had my ureterscopy January 14 to remove large kidney stones in kidney/bladder/ureters. (This was detected during a hysterectomy last November.) I also had a stent inserted with the thread hanging out. I was very fearful of the pain involved by reading these posts. So far the pain is not totally botherson but then again I have been dealing with an UTI since the hysterectomy and meds not relieving the pain to my desire. (I have also previously endured wrist surgery, major spine surgery, a uterine ablation, a D&C and naturally delivered 10lb babies) I have now been prescribed Cipro 1000mg ODx3, Percocet: 5mg/325mg 2 every 4 hours, and Detrol 5mg 3x/day. Peeing is constant as i am also constantly drinking water and cranberry juice. I am wearing a pad but there is no more blood...I use the pad as a presserary and apply pressure to vagaga when walking and periodically when sitting. I am also doing kegels. The most bothersome issue is that dang thread--I have accidently pulled it twice. I also cannot bend---that causes pain but it is manageable with a grunt and a loud groan...LOL...I am scheduled for a kidney xray next week and if all is well the urologist will pull the cord. I am hopeful the pain following will not be too bad...I feel some of my pain is actually the healing from the hysterexctomy which is not healing fully on the inside (granulous tissue growing over unhealed areas. I am now creating a new eating/exercise lifesyle to avoid kidney stones developing again and to lose weight (I also have a fatty enlarged liver. I am 43 yrs old at 205 lbs (I lost 10 lbs since November/hysterectomy) According to Real Age mybody thinks I am 52...eek...time to get fit and have fun!!!
Good luck to everyone going through this procedure!! The short term pain now will result in a great, active, painfree life! Be well!
I didn't need a catheter apparently. I asked the doctor why and he said that it was just a feeling he had that it wouldn't be needed on this occasion. Because I was passing urine ok and all of my observations were good I could check out a few hours after the procedure and go home.
Yes it stings a fair bit when I urinate but I have no other uncomfortable symptoms and I can't detect that the stent is in there.
Subject to all being well he is going to go in there in a week and try to break up and retrieve the 9 mm stone which is located in my right ureter just above the bladder.
No pain tonight.
I go in this morning to have the stone blasted and removed. The doctor said that there is a 90+% chance of success.
There was slight discomfort with the catheter in the urethra but otherwise it was pain free.
He replaced the stent and I have that removed next week under a general anaesthetic. I mentioned to the doc today that I was pleased that it would be under a general anaesthetic and he was unaware that it is common practice elsewhere (as discussed in this thread) to remove it with a topical anaesthetic.
I have to say that this has been a very good overall experience in terms of pain.
But Oct 09 I had cloudy pee and blood/protein breakdown products were found as well as a blocked left ureter and nephrosis of a kidney. There was no pain and I was easily riding faster than others in my cycling group. But later in 09 I was diagnosed with prostate cancer. All sorts of scans were done and my urologist suggested the ureter blockage be investigated in a procedure before the prostate was removed. My pee cleared up after a week and there was no pain despite the blockage. I had the investigative endoscopic surgery about 3 weeks ago where they found I had something they could not see squeezing my ureter shut. They took samples of the lumen to look for cancer but none was found. They also put ina stent after I had fasted in the hospital for 26 hours. After the stent insertion I needed 4 injections of morphine to ease the pain. I slept 4 hours and when I woke I was peeing blood and it was painful. I was released from hospital, ie, booted out, and told symptoms will ease. During the following 5 days of pain the symptomes did ease although I had an attack of even more painful backache. Bleeding stopped after 2 days. My accupuncturist gave me a treatemnt which eased my back ache, and the stent pain steadily eased.
A few days later after beginning to eat and poop again I felt so good I went out on my bike for 35km, and there was no problem. after 2 more days, 70km, and I thought all was fine. Then after another 2 days, another 80km but this time I began to pee blood after 50km so I rode the last 30km very slowly, feeling a bit alarmed. The bleeding stopped after a day's rest and pain during peeing was bad but bearable. Then after 2 more days I rode again and bleeding began after only 10km so I have given up riding for a week now completely. I no longer bleed, but have some discomfort with the stent and some pain when peeing.
My prostate op is due in 3 weeks, and I will be sending a report on pain&symptoms to my doc. He said I would bleed a bit, and that I could ride a bike, and that the stent cannot remain for longer than 6 months. He also said that if the blockage is found to be due due to cancer spread then they would not do the prostate surgery and thatI would have to have radio therapy and hormone treatment instead. OK, so now there is not big pain anywhere, but the docs really don't know my total condition and it could well be the beginnning of the end for me. I thik at 62, longevity is an oxymoron, and what I have is shortevity, and how short that time is I have no clue, but cancer killed my father, sister, and nearly got the other sister so I've always thought my turn would come, and it did. My advice? make sure you insist on a prostate biopsy when your PSA goes to 4.5. By the time its 5.0, you will have been seen by the urologist and there's still time to catch the cancer before its spread. One has to allow for medical system delays. My PSA went from 4.7 to 7 in just 1 year and maybe I was just one year too slow to catch the cancer before it spread. The medical system here does not recommend you have a biopsy before PSA reaches 7.0.
I'm hoping the ureter problem is benign and fixable and not a spread of prostate cancer, but hope never affects medical outcomes which can be far worse than you hope for and accompanied with much pain during treatments. I had a prostate biopsy without aneasthetic and was in frightful pain as 9 samples were taken. Each was positive.
But at least I am fit and healthy (apart from cancer) and not overweight so when the docs cut me open again they don't have to work around piles of unwanted fat in my guts.
Regards to all. May the God of the Universe not torment you too much.
The 2nd stone not so much. I started to have pain in March, I hate hospitals, so I endured til 4/20 then when I couldn't sleep in any position, I called an ambulance and went to the E.R. they told me I had 'a life-threatening' infection in my left kidney and a stone. Put me through 7 antibiotics before settling on one so caustic it blew 8 I.V.s before having to have a midline put in. Also got the stent in April.
Since the antibiotic was to go on for 4 months, I was placed in the nursing home from hell. After the treatments finished I waited a month before they would do surgery, then it was postponed, I had a drain in as well. I fired the original doc who wasn't even aware I had a catheter when I requested it be removed, and I had just seen him face to face.
He wanted to exchange the stent for a LARGER one.
I've had cancer (ovarian, in my teens), been in labor (16), both were extreme pain, and the stent was in another timezone of extreme, off the charts. I begged for pain killers. Soon, I had spasms so horrible I would roll in a ball and cry. The blood in my diapers went from red to black, but no one did anything.
In July I was given norcos, and dermal morphine. It worked for awhile, and I bled alot. Finally in August I was given a bladder relaxant for the spasms. I had to fight for it.
By September when the second doc finally scheduled me, I was making plans to make sure my friends and loved ones knew I loved them, certain this would end up killing me.
9/9/09 I had the surgery, litho. I had had the stent from 4/20 to 9/09
afterwards I was severely anemic. Finally able to ween myself-they were happy keeping me on the pain meds forever... off norcos, morphine and the bladder relaxant they kept giving me.
I left the nursing home on Oct 23rd. Since then I still have to wear diapers because I can't make it to the bathroom. My self-esteem has plummeted. I am only 46 years old.
I looked in hiring a lawyer, who laughed at me and said if I lost a kidney I'd have a good case, if I died it would be a great case.
From reading so many cases at this forum I think I have had it easy with the temporary uretic stent I have. But even at a concert last night with Nigel Kennedy playing violin I was in pain for some of the time. I think some stent pain comes from having a length of stiff pipe with flared ends sitting in a ureter which ordinarily can bend into any shape with body and internal organ movement which happens each day in our ordinary lives. If you bend down to tie shoe laces the ureters bend around and are pressured by other organs. So if you have a stent the end of the stent can press into soft linings of the ureter and cut them thus causing pain and bleeding. NOWHERE have I seen doctors mention this aspect of stenting; ie, the practical real world ability or disability of a patient to tolerate a stent.
I have cancer as well as ureter problems and the cause of my ureter bother could be a tumour on the ureter and I am not sure at all about what the surgeons can do to prolong my life and give me back some pain free health.
Regards to all, Patrick Turner.
On 1/27 they did a lithotripsy with stent replacement. Once again "you'll be fine in a 'few' days". Since I didn't do well the first time, I made sure I took at least 5 days off from work - including the procedure. Even then I worked one 8 hour shift and was in so much pain - I took the next 2 days off.
I just had the stent removed yesterday, it was not as bad as I thought it would be (men may have a worse time because the removal has to go over the prostate). I had some bloody urine for a while - LOTS of stones, but not a lot of pain (at least - so far). I hate doctors that have no compassion or bedside manner, but I don't have many options - there are only 2 groups in town and the other group if kinda far to travel. If I ever have to have another litho or basket removal - I may try the other group.
Good luck to you all. My best advice to everyone is DON'T BELIEVE THE DOCTOR about the amount of pain you will be in - get the good drugs (if you aren't allergic) and take additional time off work to recover. As always - everyone reacts to pain differently - but be kind to yourself and your kidneys - DRINK LOTS AND LOTS of WATER! Again - Good luck.
The aftermath has consisted of some bladder spasms that are diminishing with time. The doctor prescribed a bladder relaxer/pain killer for that. It is somewhat uncomfortable when I urinate. It stings pretty good, but that's because the urethra is still a bit irritated. And, of course, there is blood in the urine, which will diminish as well.
Overall, it was not as bad as I expected. I did not/have not experienced the horror stories you hear from some folks about this. But then it's only been a few hours. I'll have to see how I progress through the weekend.
To those of you anticipating this procedure, I say expect some mild discomfort during the procedure. And be ready for some uncomfortable urination afterwards. Everybody is different, but in my particular case, everything was very manageable. Just continue to drink a lot of water after the procedure to help flush the blood out, and to keep the ureter from becoming irritated due to lack of fluids. Don't worry, it's not as bad as many are saying. You'll get through it just fine.
I had a stent placement last year as well but my thing is I don't remember being in this much pain or bleeding this long. I had my surgery on 3/5/10 it is now 3/14/ and the bleeding is still pretty substantial
THANK YOU
Don't expect to go back to work for at least a few days after having the stent removed. All in all, the stent is the worst, but the alternataive of having the uerter close up, back up urine, damage the kidney would be worse. Losing a kidney and having to live by dialysis would be worse. I hope I never have to go thru this again!
I felt nothing when they put it in through my nephrostomy tube, I had a few days of being uncomfortable, a bit like period pains and my bladder felt a little funny. I was back at work after the weekend.
I thought I would put this in case there is anyone else out there looking for info and they are terrified. I think everyone is different, or it could be that the surgeon who put mine is was brilliant!
I have tried a lot of different anti-spasm meds, but was just put on another since the Nucynta isn't working as well. I now take 100 g Nucynta, Tylenol with codine ( so much vicadin I ended up with an allergic reaction) detrol and advil (800mg at a shot.) Next I am going to do a lot of self talk since I still suffer pain.
I too experienced the most terrible pain with stent removal. Thank goodness it is a quick procedure.
It has been extremely helpful finding this site and finding out it isn't all in my head. The Doctors make me feel like I am unusual in that I have so much pain. Now I know the TRUTH!
Hang in there... I had bilateral stents for 3 months, then again with daughter for 3 months (one side). It's is awful... I want to validate that. It feel at times like a sharp knife. I would really encourage you to go on disability (I did). Take it easy. Get off your feet. Tylenol seemed to help me toward the end. I feel for you. Just wanted to let you know. Maybe you've had your baby since posting, let us know.
They held me in the hospital, doctor took the 7mm stone out in an operation and he put the 2 stints in. The 10mm stone was crushed with the ultrasound table, not sure if its out yet. Dont know what happened to the 4mm stone. The doctor prescribed Detrol LA 4mg and Uroxatral 10 mg. He perscribed Vicodins but I am already on Percocet so my pain management doctor did not want me to "OD". He gave me a prescription for Fentora and a free coupon, I can see why it was free (like eating a Tic-Tac).
What happens is when my pain medication is close to wearing off I start going into the spasms again and I feel like I have to pee more often. That part of the process is starting to lessen but I believe it will come back when he takes the stents out for a short time. I will need something closeby to take because I will be in so much pain.
With the stents placed the nausea has subsided! I can eat again... which is great. However, I feel USELESS. I am in pain from the stents. Lots of blood & tissue in my urine. My bladder spasms are killer. (And it feels like my bladder is always full) I hate taking the oxycodone for the pain, but I can't go long without it. I feel guilty doing so, because of the baby. I have a difficult time sleeping and I can't wait to have these out! The doctor gave my husband notice to take off work for a few days. He goes back to work on Monday (4 days from now) and I am freaking out a bit. I have a 23 month old daughter at home... I don't know what I am going to do. Thought maybe I was just being too weak and needed to suck it up. Glad I am not crazy... or being a big "baby." I am so frustrated right now, it brings me to tears.
With the stents placed the nausea has subsided! I can eat again... which is great. However, I feel USELESS. I am in pain from the stents. Lots of blood & tissue in my urine. My bladder spasms are killer. (And it feels like my bladder is always full) I hate taking the oxycodone for the pain, but I can't go long without it. I feel guilty doing so, because of the baby. I have a difficult time sleeping and I can't wait to have these out! The doctor gave my husband notice to take off work for a few days. He goes back to work on Monday (4 days from now) and I am freaking out a bit. I have a 23 month old daughter at home... I don't know what I am going to do. Thought maybe I was just being too weak and needed to suck it up. Glad I am not crazy... or being a big "baby." I am so frustrated right now, it brings me to tears.
Well, grab yourself a cup of coffee (or better yet water - keep those kidneys healthy!) and I'll tell you the tale...
Prior to surgery, my pain would come and go in random intervals. In terms of "kidney stone related" pain, one day I'd feel as fresh as a clear summer day, and the next I'd be walking around with the most obnoxious dull ache in my lower back (from the hip to the groin). Sometimes this would come and leave within a matter of a few hours; other times it would stick with me for nearly a week straight.
I felt as if I was constantly tired, and the "fatigue" related symptoms stuck with me pretty much on a regular basis. I was essentially diagnosed with IBS symptoms and GERD at a very young age and had recently undergone a specific diet to attempt to rid myself of systemic candidiasis (i.e. a yeast infection plaguing my intestines) My situation was very miserable around Thanksgiving in terms of the "mystery lower back pain," and around Christmas was the time I finally decided I was sick of it and needed to see the doctor. IBS and candidiasis weren’t explaining all my symptoms.
So, sure enough - I'm asked to play the "pee in the cup" game and the doctor returns saying, "Wow... there was a lot of blood in the urine. 98% of the time with males... that indicates a kidney stone." I laughed at the idea at first, since the only person whom my other relatives "thought" had a history of kidney stones was my grandfather and "supposedly" kidney stones were hereditary. Well, to make a long story short, I had the CT scan done... and "family history" or not, the stone was definitely there (14x7mm) and definitely NOT coming out on its own without any help.
Next step - find a urologist! So I did in February (2010), and by the time I got to the waiting room, I was questioning whether I was waiting to see a doctor or waiting to apply for assisted living... (no insult intended whatsoever; it was simply an amusing experience walking up to the counter, "signing the roster," and then turning around to see an entire room of senior citizens stare at me as if saying- "What on earth is this crazy young-blood doing in here??")
The urologist immediately suggests a lithotripsy, to which I ask- “Oh, well I was researching that, and won’t I have to worry about the pain that comes along with passing 50 to 100 fragments of gravel?” He then explained that they would put a stent in place and I “wouldn’t even feel them passing.” That relieved me as I nodded, “went with it,” shook his hand, went home to research it in more depth, and checked my schedule so I could plan the surgery. I also was required to get an X-ray and report back to the urologist a week later with the results. So, another week later, we go through the drill, and the urologist shows me the stone on the scan. I was a full-time student, taking a tough load of core level classes at the time, so I decided to schedule the surgery after the semester had wrapped up. The first available time was May 7.
… … …
(Continued as “Part II”)
So, a week before May 7 (… it may have actually been 2 weeks…) I stumble across this place. WOW! Talk about a collection of “Tales from the Underworld” that I wasn’t expecting. The 5-letter word “S-T-E-N-T” had me scared to death, as I actually finished reading through all 200 testimonies and only 5 or 6 of them said something along the lines of “It wasn’t that bad” or “in terms of pain, this was a good experience.”
I figured it was time to conduct my own research. I started asking around with people I came into direct contact with – pretty much anyone – if they personally had AND/OR knew someone who had experienced the lithotripsy with a stent. Most of them said the exact same thing- “I was out for the surgery so I don’t remember anything about that. Once you have the stent in place, you WILL feel it when you urinate! Make no mistake – you will not feel like “running” or “lifting” anything for a couple days.”
I also read several hundreds of testimonies on various websites, and I’ve noticed there is a VERY strong correlation between individuals who are pregnant and/or have cancer and individuals who testify about horrible stent pain. At this point, I started feeling better about the whole process, and decided to stop worrying about the “demonic pain that might be.” My urologist’s assistant said that “80% of people don’t even feel the stent,” but I have a hard time buying that one… either way, it certainly can’t be true when referring to the urination process.
Anyway, May 7 rolls around (and it feels like it was just yesterday instead of a week ago) and I decided to go in with an extra chirpy attitude… I was after all, about to be put out COLD for 2 hours… why not have a little fun beforehand? So, I started joking around with the anesthesiologist and the nurses about the “fun” I was ready to undergo. I admitted that I was nervous about the whole deal, to which a nurse said, “Oh we’ll give you a sedative to relax you. I can give it to you now, unless you want to speak with the doctor (i.e. the “doctor” who was about to perform the surgery that I hadn’t even met yet). I temporarily declined and said, “Actually I think I’m going to ask him some questions first…”
10 minutes pass. The doctor soon arrives… and he is ALL “business” – very professional, not interested in “sharing a joke” or anything of the sort. He just proceeds to describe exactly how the cystoscopy works… i.e. how they’re going to shove the stent up “the tube” while I’m under the anesthetic. I asked him a couple questions about “stones potentially getting lodged in the stent,” to which he explained that it “wasn’t going to happen like that.”
Then, my father (who had been sent to say a quick farewell before they wheeled me into the procedure room) says, “Hey, it all sounds straightforward. Now it’s pretty likely that he’ll be good to go after one ‘litho’ right?” …To which the doctor turns his head toward my father and utters “… No,” almost as if in the tone- “Are you kidding me? Who told you THAT garbage??” He then explained with a stone as “big” as mine, 2-3 Lithos was not uncommon before the stone could be fully broken up to the point that it would ALL pass through… and we’d just have to wait and see how things went after the first week.
So I was wheeled away, and given the drugs. I was having two procedures done. #1. Stent placement on left side via cystoscopy. #2. Left lithotripsy…
… … …
(Continued as “Part III”)
I woke up 2 hours later with minor pain. Of course, upon eating the saltine crackers I was offered while coming back to the “real world,” I knew what came next – I would have to URINATE! Otherwise, the nurses weren’t allowed to let me leave. So, I went into the bathroom expecting to see a whole lot of blood and feel a nasty jolt of pain… well, maybe I was still under some heavy pain pills at the time, because there was plenty of blood but it really wasn’t all that painful. The nurses came in to see the “proof” that I qualified to be dismissed, and I was relieved to jump in the car and leave the surgical center with minimal pain.
The meds started to wear off and I came home ready to urinate again (one “rumor” that is true about stents – they give you a sense of “urgency” you’ve probably never experienced before!) about 25-30 minute later….
OKAY… I admit.. THAT was NOT a fun experience. The feeling upon releasing urine with a new stent is akin to a UTI with hellfire. Compared to some of the stories I’ve read, I still think I had it relatively easy during “Pee #2” because although the sting was painful, it really wasn’t what I’d call “unbearable.” I was able to stand upright and steady myself while “emptying”… and there was no screaming… ;)
From that point, on and off I would notice that same irritating dull aches in my left back… basically the same thing I described earlier (prior to seeing my doctor and discovering the stone). The first few days were the worst, but the Vicodin I was prescribed really did help with the pain. Overall, through the day, I can’t say it was really that bad. As long as I kept taking a pill every 4-6 hours, I didn’t encounter any terrible pain with the stent by itself. Of course, urinating continued to cause the typical “stent” burning sensation, but as I drank more water and green tea, the intensity lessened and it became easier to deal with the discomfort.
Days 2-3 were the most annoying, which probably doesn’t come as any surprise. For the first 5 nights I could NOT find a comfortable position when trying to go to sleep. I think this is because whether you’re reclining on a couch or lying down on a bed, you’re putting pressure on the stent. That discomfort also eventually subsided, and now (7 days later) I can lie on the side opposite of the stent without causing much pain. Waking up in the mornings was probably the worst part of each day… the pain meds had worn off, the bladder was full (or at least felt full), and pressure had been applied for several hours… needless to say, I haven’t been a “morning person” for a week since the surgery. ;)
There was indeed plenty of blood upon urination. In fact, today (once again, Day 7) is the very first day since the litho and stent placement that my urine has actually started to look like clear urine… and NOT dark cranberry juice. Don’t let the blood or clots intimidate you… it’s typical and for the first couple days, it may actually look like 99% blood… 1% pee. It’s all part of the “experience”… nothing disastrous.
… … …
(Continued as “Part IV”)
This afternoon I went back to see my urologist and presented him my latest X-ray taken yesterday. The new X-ray appeared to show a stone similar to first X-ray, except it had taken a “wave” shape. At first I figured this meant to prepare for Litho #2 without question, but the doctor actually said that the shape was primarily dust and small particles that could clear up in due time. I was getting worried about the “success” of the first Litho, because all I had managed to capture when straining was a few VERY small glass-like particles of the stone. However, it seems the Litho process can reduce these giant stones to miniscule sand fragments and you’ll hardly know you’re passing them.
Well, this just about concludes my history tale of Ryan’s Litho / Stent adventure. My urologist prescribed some more Vicodin to deal with any recurring stent discomfort, and I’m sitting hear typing this with very little pain at the moment. Urinating is still “annoying” but it’s most certainly not unbelievably painful by any means.
I will be getting another X-ray next week and return to see my urologist for further instruction. I shall then post my new tale with Update II.
My whole point in going through this long story is because I know there are others out there who (like I did) are considering or about to go through the Litho / stent placement procedure and have their eyes popping out at the some of the scary stories here. I wanted to assure you that NOT everyone suffers “tremendous pain” while dealing with a ureteral stent. As for me, it was certainly tolerable… at least so far. I will, of course, update you with honest feedback no matter what direction my condition takes.
NOTE: I am by NO MEANS attempting to downplay other people’s testimonies when they claim they have experienced terrible degrees of pain. I do sympathize with those of you who have had to deal with excessive pain and discomfort and wish you the speediest of recoveries.
Update II to follow.
- Ryan V.
Ugh! That sounds horrible, and I hope you can avoid the stent procedure.
Are you fairly certain it's a UTI? I ask because 2 years ago I went to the doctor with standard "UTI symptoms" as well and he quickly diagnosed me with a UTI, which of course came with a significant does of anti-biotics - Cipro and Levaquin. After noticing that the symptoms were only growing worse, I went to a different doctor who immediately suggested running several blood and urine tests.
I ended up developing a nasty yeast infection (see "Candida ablicans" or "candidiasis") and all those anti-biotics were only adding fuel to the fire, because they destroy the "bad bacteria" along with the "good bacteria" that fights off fungus within the body.
If the anti-biotics are relieving those symptoms and you are noticing a difference, you're probably fighting off a standard UTI. However, if feel the symptoms growing worse or no change, you may want to return to your doctor and start asking about testing for yeast overgrowth. They can spread to the bladder, kidneys, etc. and cause infection very similar to a UTI.
Best wishes,
- Ryan V.
My father had a kidney stone 20 years ago, went into hospital, cut open, stone removed, back to work 10 days later. So far I have been to the hospital 6 times prior to the recent, first, surgical attempt to remove the stone - that failed and resulted in the stent - and another operation is proposed in 3 to 4 weeks. In the meantime there is no way I can work unless there is sudden improvement in my condition (which seems unlikely after reading this page). It seems like the old way would be both quicker and less painful for me, as well as taking up less of the consultants and other hospital staffs time and money.
Maybe the old ways are the best.
one who has kidney stones this surgery really dose help
Wow! It's good to hear you're feeling better now after emergency surgery.
Did you end up having a stent placed? If so, I wouldn't be surprised if the discomfort attributed to the stent is a cake-walk compared to a blocked ureter with a 1 cm stone... from the testimonies I've heard, that can be absolutely horrible.
Anyway not trying to guarantee that the rest of your recovery process will be like riding down easy street compared to your previous pain, but if you're feeling much better after surgery, then it's very possible that your body tolerates stents well and the 'worst' may be over.
Good luck and keep us updated!
- Ryan V.
Ta Ta For Now!
I had my procedure and stent placement last june 10. My doc said the stent will stay for 8 weeks. My main concern right now is the bloody urine... until now, my urine is not very clear... I can still see fresh blood and its been like 19 days since the procedure... do you think that is 'normal'? anybody has a similar experience? Thanks in advance.
Mike
Someone asked about stent/catheter removal ( nephrostomy) it doesnt really hurt at all more discomfort, ask the doctor to tell you to cough when they pull it out.
Hi Nancy, i've read your note and have recently heard about permanent stents which are made from titanium, called Memokath, and are much more comfortable and less likely to cause infections. Perhaps you should ask your urologist for more information on this. There is nothing worse than an infection when you have a stent in - I really feel for you! Hope everything improves for you.
My ureteral constriction is caused by an aneurysm that has developed scar tissue around it. That is pressing on the ureter causing the restriction of proper urine flow resulting in SEVERE pain such as is the case with a kidney stone.
Adjusting to having a stent in place can be really difficult, especially in the beginning. What I've learned from reading this site is that the response to stent placement seems to be very individualized. Some of us experience excrutiating pain, while others just annoying discomfort. Here are some things that I have found helpful: use pyridium, detrol, or anti-inflammatory meds if your urologist has ordered them (they decrease the discomfort significantly); drink loads of water; see if changes in your position help. I find that if I am walking alot, I am very uncomfortable. Certain sitting positions are more comfortable than others and when I am in pain, I try to move around until I find one that is tolerable. Lying flat seems to be best for me.
I wish you luck.