VietNamNet Bridge – Doctors of the Vietnam – Cuba Friendship Hospital in the central province of Quang Binh removed a big kidney stone as large as a bowl (10x6 cm in size) from the right kidney of a 51-year-old woman.

Doctors say that this was a very rare case and the biggest kidney stone they had ever seen. The patient is a farmer from Dong Trach commune, Bo Trach district, Quang Binh province.

Doctors say they had to break the stone to take it out easily.

A kidney stone, also known as a renal calculus, is a solid concretion or crystal aggregation formed in the kidneys from dietary minerals in the urine.

Kidney stones typically leave the body by passage in the urine stream, and many stones are formed and passed without causing symptoms. If stones grow to sufficient size (usually at least 3 millimeters), they can cause obstruction of the ureter. Ureteral obstruction causes postrenal azotemia and hydronephrosis, as well as spasm of the ureter. This leads to pain, most commonly felt in the flank, lower abdomen and groin.

When a stone causes no symptoms, watchful waiting is a valid option. For symptomatic stones, pain control is usually the first measure, using medications such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or opioids. More severe cases may require surgical intervention.

Le Ha