Bladder Stones – Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

The organ that stores urine in the body is termed as bladder. It is present in the pelvic area. Sometimes urine gets stagnated in the bladder and thereby resulting in the salts and minerals to get accumulated in the bladder. They form as a residue and in due course of time gets accumulated in the bladder to form bladder stones. The accumulation of salts and minerals in the bladder is termed as bladder stone.

Bladder stone is formed in case of urinary tract infection or due to an enlarged prostate gland. The infection can be largely reduced by proper diet control and intake of nutritious food. Lot of awareness among people can also help to decrease the incidence in formation of bladder stone. If it is not properly diagnosed and treated it may lead to many complications in the future.


Causes of Bladder Stone

Kidneys play a major role in filtering the liquid waste from the blood. This liquid waste is termed as urine. The two tubes leading from the kidneys called as ureters carry the waste and enter the bladder. The urine is stored in the bladder. When the bladder is full, pressure builds up and the urine is released through a tube called as urethra that leads from the bladder.

Sometimes the urine in the bladder is not released and gets accumulated in the bladder due to enlarged prostate gland or due to an infection in the urinary tract. This results in the salt wastes and minerals in the urine to crystallize and helps in the formation of bladder stones. Due to this the normal flow of urine is restricted.

However, there are also certain other reasons which causes the above mentioned factors that results in formation of bladder stones.

Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH): It is one of the major reasons that results in the formation of bladder stones. This is the condition which results in the enlargement of prostate gland and thereby compressing the urethra. This obstructs the normal flow of urine.

Bladder diverticula: There are certain areas in the bladder that tend to become weak rarely. Theses areas in due course of time form a pouch in the bladder. The urine may get stagnated in these pouches resulting in the accumulation of urine. This ultimately leads to the formation of stones.

Neurogenic bladder: This is a condition where the nerves that carry the message to the brain and back from the brain gets damaged. This in turn damages the contraction and relaxation of the muscles that help in the release or elimination of urine. This leads to urine accumulation and finally bladder stones.


Symptoms of Bladder Stones:

The major symptoms that are associated with this disease are

1. Severe pain in the lower abdomen

2. Intense pain while passing urine

3. Blood or dark coloration in the urine

This disease mostly affects men as they posses the prostate gland. Men over 45 years of age tend to develop an enlargement in the prostate gland. The chances of prostate gland enlargement, increases with advancing age. Fewer amounts of fluid intake and urinary infection can be the major causes of this disease.


Treatment for Bladder Stone:

The major tests that has to be done for treatment for bladder stone are

1. Urine tests to check the concentration of urine

2. X-rays of the prostate and bladder

3. Blood test and ultrasound scans to detect the stones.

Cystoscopy technique:

Cystoscopy technique is used to examine the inside of the bladder. Cystoscope is a fiber optic camera which is inserted into the bladder to see if there is any formation of stones in the bladder. The fiber optic camera passes via urethra and runs to the bladder. The stones that are found in the bladder are broken down into minute particles. These particles are washed out when urine is passed out.

The above surgical technique is necessary only if the stones are too large or very hard.


Tips to avoid Bladder Stone:

The following are the important tips to be followed to avoid bladder stones.

1. Increase the fluid intake as this facilitates the flush out of waste salt and minerals frequently without accumulation in the bladder.

2. Check for enlarged prostate, gout or urinary tract infection and take proper medication as these are the main causes for bladder stones.

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