Question

a patient presents to your family practice office with classic renal colic with his pain being a 6 on a 1 to 10 scale, with 10 being the worst pain imaginable. you refer your patient for a stat computed tomography (ct) scan of the kidneys. your radiologist calls and advises that the ct reveals that your patient has a 4 mm stone at the ureterovesical junction (uvj) on the left side without evidence of hydronephrosis. what should you advise your patient?

Answer 1

The correct advice to give your patient in this case is that they should drink additional fluids and stay hydrated to help pass the stone, but that if their pain increases or they develop any additional symptoms such as fever, nausea, or vomiting, they should seek immediate medical attention as this may indicate a more serious complication. Additionally, if the stone does not pass within a reasonable time period, your patient may then require additional intervention such as surgery or treatment with shock wave therapy to remove the stone or fragment it into smaller pieces to allow for easier passage.