A Closer Look At Kidney Stones
A kidney stones is a hard, crystal-like mass that develops in the kidney. Under normal circumstances, your kidney will collect and dissolve your body’s waste materials and send them to the bladder to be excreted. Kidney stones occur when solid waste materials do not dissolve into the urine. Over time, these materials build up and form kidney stones.
In most cases, kidney stones are passed through the urine without even being noticed. However, stones can become too large to pass and ultimately block the flow of urine, causing severe pain in the back, side, or abdomen. When this occurs, the stone must be treated in order to stop the pain and resume normal urine flow. The most common form of treatment for kidney stones is lithotripsy.