Kidney stones aren’t life threatening. However they are one of the most painful diseases anyone may experience. Good thing there are several procedures for the removal of kidney stones. Most of these treatments do not require surgery.

The first treatment is a conservative treatment, one in which is the simplest way to flush the stones out. It is by drinking lots of water, around eight to ten glasses a day. This will be sufficient enough to push the stones down the urinary tract and out of your body. Exercise along with water, can also help removing the kidney stones.

Another procedure for removal of kidney stones is ureteroscopic stone removal. This process does not require incision. What the surgeon does is thread a ureteroscope through the urethra and bladder and up to the ureter. Once there the surgeon either pulls out the kidney stones or applies ultrasonic or energy to break down the stone into smaller pieces

Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy is the most common procedure for the removal of kidney stones that are just too large to flush out from the body. It does not require surgery as well. What is done is a machine sends shock waves into the abdomen, and these shock waves where they break down the kidney stones until they are dissolved into smaller pieces that can pass through the urine. It does not involve the use of scalpel as well but it does have its side effects. It can cause bruising and some abdominal pains.

Another type of procedure for kidney removal is the percutaneous nephrolithotomy. This is used when sound waves can’t reach the kidney stones. It is done by making a small incision at the back of the patient. Then the surgeon inserts an instrument called a nephroscope that enters the kidney removes the stones. After percutaneous nephrolithotomy, patients need to stay in the hospital for a few days. The definitive advantage of this operation is that the surgeon is able to take out all the kidney stones. So the patient does not have to undergo the process of urinating the broken down kidney stone pieces.