Warning Signs Of Kidney Stones You Should Know

Kidney stones are hard deposits of minerals and acid salts that stick together in concentrated urine. They can be painful when passing through the urinary tract, but usually don't cause permanent damage. The most common symptom of kidney stones is severe pain, usually in the side of the abdomen often associated with nausea. Most kidney stones eventually pass through the urinary tract on their own within 48 hours, with ample fluid intake.

The warning signs of kidney stones include symptoms like pain in the back or abdomen, pain or burning sensation during urination, blood in the urine, cloudy or smelly urine, nausea and vomiting, fever, and chills. These signs tell you that something is wrong with your kidneys. Sometimes kidney stone pain starts as a dull ache but it can quickly escalate to severe cramping or sharp, pain which a patient usually feels in the back or underneath the rib cage. The pain can also radiate into the lower abdomen or groin. 

Kidney stones treatment consists of fluids and urinary retention medications. The treatment includes pain relievers and drinking lots of water to help pass the stone. Medical procedures may be required to remove or break up larger stones. Pain relief may require narcotic medications. Lithotripsy procedure uses sound waves to break up large kidney stones so they can more easily pass down into the bladder. Other options for kidney stones removal are tunnel surgery and ureteroscopy. 

Natural remedies for kidney stones include drinking plenty of water, minimizing the intake of coffee, alcohol, tea, and soda while passing a kidney stone, drinking lemon juice, and raw apple cider vinegar and eating foods that are diuretic. In addition to flushing out the kidneys, apple cider vinegar can help ease pain caused by the stones. The excess fluid encourages urination, which helps move the stone along. 

Recovery Time After Liver Transplant

A liver transplant is a surgical procedure that removes a liver that no longer functions properly and replaces it with a healthy liver from a deceased donor or a portion of a healthy liver from a living donor. Liver transplant is a treatment option for end-stage liver disease and acute liver failure. The most common technique is orthotopic transplantation, in which the native liver is removed and replaced by the donor organ in the same anatomic position as the original liver. It is a complex surgical procedure requiring careful harvest of the donor organ and meticulous implantation into the recipient. Liver transplantation is highly regulated, and the surgical procedure is only done at designated transplant medical centers by highly trained transplant physicians and supporting the medical team. The duration of the surgery ranges from 4 to 18 hours depending on the outcome.

Recovery time after liver transplant is usually six months or more before the patient feels fully healed. The liver begins to regenerate itself almost immediately. During surgery, about 40 percent to 60 percent of the donor's liver is removed. The average hospital stay for both recipients and donors is seven days and the recovery time for donors is about two months. The patient may be able to resume normal activities or go back to work a few months after surgery.

Life after liver transplant depends on the success rate of the transplant. In general, about 75% of people who undergo liver transplants live for at least five years. Whether you are giving away part of your liver or getting a new one, life often goes back to normal a few months after liver transplant surgery. Within three months, the liver reaches its normal size and the patient can get back to the normal routine. 

How To Recover And Stay Well After Laparoscopic Surgery

Laparoscopy is a surgical diagnostic procedure used to examine the organs inside the abdomen. It is a low-risk, minimally invasive procedure that requires only small incisions. Laparoscopy uses an instrument called a laparoscope to look at the abdominal organs. Laparoscopic surgery is performed in the abdomen or pelvis using small incisions with the aid of a camera. It is a modern surgical technique offering several advantages to the patients as compared to the open procedure. It reduces pain due to smaller incisions, reduces hemorrhaging and recovery time is much shorter. The key element is the use of a laparoscope, a long fiber optic cable system that allows viewing of the affected area by inserting the cable from a more distant, but more easily accessible location. 

After laparoscopic surgery, patients can resume all normal activities within a week. They need to make a follow-up appointment with the doctor about two weeks after laparoscopy. After the surgery, it is recommended that patients begin light physical activity as soon as possible to reduce the risk of blood clots. They must also get adequate rest with sound sleep so that the body can repair and heal faster. 

Laparoscopic surgery is a different experience for everyone based on the patient’s expectations, the extent of surgery, the length of surgery, and how one responds to pain. Laparoscopy is usually done on an outpatient basis, although an overnight stay may be required if the surgery is complex or lengthy. 

For the first two or three days after the laparoscopic surgery, it helps to have a family member or a friend stay close to the patient who can take charge of managing the medications for the first couple of days and arrange meals during that period.