Can online kidney stone treatments help you?
Glass of Water
Many people seem to look online for kidney stone treatments as well as ways to prevent kidney stones. This is a topic that is quite difficult to successfully research online and the main reason is that the online source can only put out generalized information. The causes of kidney stones vary quite a bit and the Internet does not know how to ask, anything about you. Even if the Internet did know how to ask the right questions, you may not know the answers without the assistance of a urologist or other physician.
Most sites for online kidney stone treatments will talk about drinking more fluids and in the case of water that could almost never be bad advice. They may also talk about herbal meds with undefined actions but often have some type of diuretic activity.
The best test to help define your metabolism and how to best prevent future stones is a 24 hour urine collection. This measures some chemicals in the urine and if something is out of balance, this might be able to be corrected with diet changes or medication.
An example of how the Internet can fail is that even if you know what your stone is made of the recommendations can vary. The most common type of stone is made of calcium oxalate. However, the problem in an individual case can be related to the calcium, the oxalate, both, or even neither, if a different component to the 24 hour urine test is present in too low a quantity, namely citrate. Citrate prevents the formation of crystals (and stones) in the urine.
Another issue is that if you have a calcium oxalate stone and the issue is actually the oxalate, cutting down on dairy (and calcium) can actually make things worse by increasing the absorption of oxalate in the intestines.
So if you have had a kidney stone, and especially if you have had more than one, you should see a urologist to help monitor your condition and prevent future episodes. As a Las Vegas urologist, Dr. Newman will help find the best course of treatment for you.