Urologist Dr. Max. Specialist in minimally invasive urological procedures.

Getting Your Kidney Stones Removed Fast and Affordably in Costa Rica

I have had kidney stones! I have also labored and delivered three children, broken bones, and was a competitive gymnast in my youth. All of these things represent a great deal of pain but nothing, and I mean nothing, compares to the pain that I endured battling kidney stones.

It is no joke or exaggeration, the pain is excruciating and can take a long time to resolve.

A kidney stone is a solid crystal that forms in the kidneys from dissolved urinary minerals. Most stones pass via the urinary tract, but some become lodged or are simply too large to pass once they leave the kidney.

Most are formed by a type of calcium some from urea or other minerals and most are passed unrecognizably to the person. The problem is when the stone gets so large that it causes extreme pain and bleeding upon passing.

The first step is to determine if what you are experiencing is indeed a kidney stone. This can be done via ultrasound, Xray, or CT scan, among other tests.

What these tests will show is that you do indeed have a stone but more importantly it can tell you the size as well. This will be important to know so that a proper treatment plan can be put into place.

According to the Mayo clinic about 85% of stones will pass on their own with no medical intervention necessary. They pass usually within 72 hours helped along by taking in lots of water. For the other 15% it can be a long journey of pain, bleeding, and general malaise. Pain medication is almost always needed and some times surgical intervention is the only way to remove the stone.

Urologist Dr. Max with Scott Oliver of CostaRicaHospital.com

There are several methods of minimally invasive treatments available to help get rid of kidney stones:

The most common treatment uses shock waves on the outside of the body to break up the stone into smaller fragments so that it can be passed more easily in the urine. It is a treatment best used for stones that are 1cm or smaller. The procedure takes about an hour and can be done under sedation, local, or general anesthesia.

There are few side effects but some are bruising, blood in the urine, and discomfort when passing the granule size stones and the recovery time is minimal.

The cost in the US for this procedure averages US$15,000 at the time this article is written.

You will be pleased to know that the solution for your kidney stone problems in Costa Rica will be significantly more affordable.

When the stone is too large for lithotripsy or when the lithotripsy was ineffective in helping to pass the stone, this treatment is usually the next option. The patient will need general anesthesia and a small incision on the back.

A nephroscope is used to break up and extract ALL the fragments of the stone. The procedure is a bit more intensive so the patient typically stays overnight in the hospital and the recovery time is 1-2 weeks, slightly longer then with the lithotripsy method.

If the stone becomes lodged in either the ureter or the kidney this procedure will be the best option. The patient may have local or general anesthesia. An uretheroscope is passed into the urethra to reach the stone, break it up, and help it to pass.

Oftentimes a small tube is left in place to help with the passage of the remaining stone fragments and to relieve swelling. Recovery time is also short and usually without incident.

Some tips to avoid kidney stones in general are to; keep yourself hydrated as the stones form more easily in concentrated urine, avoid a diet high in sodium, protein, and nitrogen and drink coffee!

Independent studies have shown that caffeine is effective in staving off kidney stone formation. If you do develop a kidney stone, be sure to use a strainer to try and catch it upon passing, this way the doctor can analyze it for composition and set up a treatment plan suited to you so you can hopefully avoid getting more...

These procedures can be a life saver when suffering with the pain associated with kidney stones. Dr. Max is an English speaking urologist here at Hospital CIMA in Costa Rica, he is vastly experienced with all of these procedures and is happy to assist in anyway.

You can read Gary and Vicki Barnard's letter about Life Threatening Kidney Stone Problem Resolved by Dr. Max here.

Written by Mary Hickcox who is a registered nurse, trained in the US. She has worked for 12 years in Connecticut hospitals, first as a nurse's aide and then as Registered Nurse (RN). Her experience is in surgical and emergency medicines, although she has also worked in medical, cardiology, and oncology.

If you or someone in your family is looking for affordable, superior surgery solutions for a kidney stone problem, please answer the simple questions below and Dr. Max will contact you privately within the next 24 hours to help find the best surgeon in Costa Rica for you: