Pain extending now 4 months after stent removal!
Posted , 14 users are following.
I'm 60 years old and a female. My story started with a 5mm stone that couldn't travel down my left ureter the day after Thanksgiving this past year. All of us that have had previous stones in the past knows how painful that is! That was on a Friday and on the following Tuesday I had the stone removed with a stent put in my left kidney ureter. 6 days later the stent was removed by my urologist (12/6). It wasn't 2 hours after that I was back in his office in severe pain. He told me I was having bladder spams that was rare after having my stent taken out. These one hour spasm attacks lasted for 6 horrible days. Once the spasms finally went away, I continued to have pain in my left groin area. The urologist's nurse told me that was from being constipated which I knew wasn't true. So eventually, I had 2 ultrasounds done, 1 MRI and a CT scan that all revealed that I had mild to moderate hydronephrosis (swelling) in my left ureter close to my bladder. Then on 3/3, I had a ureteroscopy surgery that revealed that I had scarring and it was restricting my urine flow so he put another stent in for 2 weeks this time. He suggested that must be the reason for all my pain. I had the stent removed 3 weeks ago and felt perfect for about 2 days. On the third night after my stent was removed, the pain started back as before but this time with a lot of left back pain along with the groin pain that I had before. It's been 3 weeks since my stent was removed and my pain is not getting better. A visit with my urologist yesterday left me confused. He doesn't think ureter pain should be affecting my groin area and I should only be having pain in my back at my kidney if my ureter was restricted. He said the restriction in my ureter would not have came back so quickly. I googled a lot and every site I came to said that ureter pain can be in your back, abdomen and your groin. He even indicated it could be a pinch nerve that happened during my first stent being removed. He is setting me up with a nuclear test to test the flow of my left ureter compared to my right ureter. If it shows a restriction then I will have to have a robotic lap ureter re-implant. If it doesn't show enough of a restriction or no restriction at all then I'm back to square one! It's been 4 months now with all this pain and I still don't know what's really causing it and I'm getting discouraged. Has anyone else had this kind of experience after having their stent removed? I still feel like the culprit is my ureter but I really don't know what to think any more. I just want to get back to pre kidney stone condition and I'm afraid that's not going to happen anytime soon.
1 like, 18 replies
ashley84709 VickyC.
Edited
VICKY!!
i am going through something VERY similar. it is absolutely the worst medical problem i have ever dealt with and its driving me insane. please read my post from today. im so sorry you are going through this. do not let the urologst tell you that what you already intuitively know isnt true. im certain your pain is coming from the ureter. i had my stent removed 5 weeks ago and have been dealing with almost constant pain in the right abdomen, flank, groin and hip since then. i, too have had an ultrasound and an IVP showing kidney swelling and impaired drainage. i also had the severe and debilitating episodes of pain a few hours after stent removal.
im waiting on CT urogram this friday and im expecting to need another ureteroscopy after that, just like you. my stone was only 3mm and diagnosed on 2/22/22 (oh cursed day lol). i had ureteroscopy on 3/10/22 with indwelling stent for 2 weeks. he had to dilate/stretch my ureter with a balloon down near the bladder during that procedure. i think that is why im still miserable- something is scarred down from that stretching. the reason i say that is ive had ureteroscopy stone removal once in 2020 and had no complications.
hang in there because you are NOT alone! its so comforting to me to know there are others out there dealing with the same thing.
Ashley
robert11589 VickyC.
Edited
I am a 62 year old male. I have had two kidney stone removals done in the last two months. Three stones on the right with the stent remaining in for 8 days. The duration of stent insert was very uncomfortable but I had no pain after the stent was removed by the doctor. I had two kidney stones removed from my left kidney on Tuesday and I left the stent inserted for 3 full days. I just removed the stent today at home on the left side and about 4 hours after the removal the pain in the left ureter area came to me and it was almost unbearable. I have taken 1000 MGs of Tylenol and the pain has subsided for now I will see how many days the pain remains and if it starts to subside over time. Research shows that removal of the stent in less then 7 days can cause an increase in ureter pain. Time will tell if the pain stays or goes away. I was ready to jump into an oxycodone but I held off because that drug messes with my colon.
Eickleberry1. robert11589
Posted
your not suppose to take the stent out until 2-3 weeks 3 days in you still have swelling please go back to dr you should have left it in until the dr told you to come in for stent removal i had a stent in and had to wait two weeks i had actually felt relief when mine was removed because the stent was causing me discomfort that was in 2014 although im reading on this thread for another issue im having i do hope you feel better
brooke25878 VickyC.
Edited
I'm SO happy to read this... but also unhappy as we're all in pain!
I've had kidney stone removal, stent put in, stent infected, stent removed, kidney stone fragments passed 3 days later (like labour pains) and had what i presumed was a bad UTI only to be told today i have no infection.
Surgeon doesn't know what it is but after 8 weeks since the start of the saga i am over the pain and just want answers.
Thank you for posting your story as it's made me realise that i'm not alone and other people are going through the same thing. Just wish we could all get answers!!!!
So please update and share if you've found any answers and it gives me hope there may be an end to this never ending pain 😦
Eickleberry1. brooke25878
Posted
i may be able to help you out with this im a frequent kidney stone person in 2014 i had stones that almost killed me i was pregnant at the time so they didnt know what it was because prego and all cant get imaging done they did ultrasounds found nothing presumed it was toxemia it wasnt until two days after my c section i coded and was sent to ccu where they told me i was going to die prepare for saying goodbye and i never got to see my baby children were not allowed in there well when everyone left i went on about i just dont understand how yall gonna let me die yall even sent me home with renal failure saying it was toxemia and the dr came close to me grabbed my arm and said there is nothing in your chart about that i said well it happened so she ordered a mri and sure enough had a huge stone there blocking everything and i was septic and sepsis was entered my blood was so sick i couldnt keep any thing down they had to do an internal ureter bypass make a tube from my kidney to a part of my ureter because i was so ill and the infection in my blood could cause more issues if they went thru my actual back for drainage i was the first to be used with their robotic assistant had a 50/50 chance to survive my aunt was the one who approved it i was so far out of it i couldnt they drained it and the urologist said it came out like sludge i was a miracle to live as i was i was on a iv antibiotics in ccu for two weeks they informed us that the stone couldnt be seen thru xray so the scope was how they actually found it and it was bigger then what the mri said was released back to labor and delivery after two days fever free stayed there for a week and was finally released two weeks later went in for stent removal and removal of the implanted stent from my kidney to the bottom portion of my ureter felt great- 2015 exact day from the previous yr came to er with excrutiating pain they blew me off next day came in same thing blew me off finally made a appt with urologist had the kub xray he stated nothing was there blew me off next day back to er they said just give her the pain meds and sent me home they acted like i was there for drugs but pain meds wasnt working went back to er now my back was feeling like a creature was clawing its way out they again blew me off so i went to another er where they did a ct scan and said same thing but didnt really blow me off gave me a script and said if you feel worse come back its now a month in im feeling weak pain meds somewhat keeping it at bay and then my kids find me unresponsive i was shaking uncontrolably was rushed by ambulance my husband had told them to take me to the hospital where i was last seen whom treated me nice and because i was unresponsive they decided a mri because my husband was yelling check her kidneys she had issues before and sure enough they found it before it became to severe although i was septic i was beginning stages was put on antibiotics iv then once infection was under control went in for lipotrisy uretroscope and stone was removed flushed and stent placed when i seen my dr come into my icu room i grabbed her hand and pulled her to me and hugged her and just cried i ugly cried and thanked her so much for beliving me when no one else did and i told her my story about what happened when i was pregnant and how me and my baby almost died because no one believed me and she just held me and stroked my hair she to cried with me and assured me everything was going to be ok now that i was in good hands she also informed me the difference in stones that acid stones do not show up on imaging that sometimes they have to watch the kidney itself to see if its draining like its suppose to to see if it has swelling because sometimes imaging just cant see everything and its up to the dr to make the call and the radiologist and your body knows when something is wrong if something hurts so bad that it unbearable and the drs wont listen you go to another dr and you keep doing that until someone listens and informed me i did the right thing by going to another er where that er referred you to our urology so for everyone who comes to this thread i hope you read this and i say to you do not give up hope kidney stones can kill you you fight for your life if they wont listen go to another dr and you keep on doing that until you find someone who will listen to you and say ok i believe you acid stones do not show up on xray they have to watch the functions of your kidney and sometimes your kidney wont start acting up until its almost septic for some people like me i hope my story can help others like me i have had 13 kidney stone removals since these two and this story was how it all started
the only reason im alive today from the 2014 kidney stone was because the fetus will help fight off infections my son saved my life before he was even born ❤️
landon58680 VickyC.
Posted
I just had my stent removed today and ive had a hell of a time throughout the entire process. Dr said it would be routine but was sick nearly the entire time and had debilitating pain after the stent removal ( just as bad as the original stone) along with nausea and vomiting for several hours. I tried it all, morphine, the stuff that turns your urine orange, Advil etc. The one thing that really helped was actually taking an extra strength magnesium supplement. Pain decreased significantly within about 1.5 hours. Now I’m sitting here waiting for the next episode. good luck all
brian43868 VickyC.
Posted
Hi
l am in a very similar situation to yourself regarding pain.
l had two 8 mm kidney stones stuck and a temporary stent inserted for 12 weeks before stones were removed.
l then had a further temporary stent inserted to clear stone debris. for three weeks.
The temporary stent has now been removed
and l was left with severe oedema due to stent discomfort which has now reduced significantly.
its now three weeks and l have been left with agonising back pain that shows no sign of easing off.
its difficult to do any day to day activities and l was wondering if any one can give some advice from your own experience.
greg69982 brian43868
Posted
Hi There,
I am 2 weeks past stent removal and having the same terrible back pain, I have had a ureteroscopy two other times and have never had this issue. did yours ever resolve or did you find out what the problem was? thank you.
siueballer30 VickyC.
Edited
I know that this post is a few months old and i hope that your pain is so much better or gone. A little about my story, I started having horrible pain in my lower right back and i couldn't keep anything down. I also had horrible, horrible diarrhea every time I would eat anything. I lost 20 pounds in 2 weeks, which i was happy about but not happy with how it came about. I finally went to the walk in clinic and was told to go to the ER immediately. I did and went thru a gauntlet of testing. I was then informed that my right kidney was enlarged but had no kidney stones. The dr at the ER had no explanation of why my kidney was enlarged. I still had no answers and was still in so much pain. I had an appointment with a urologist assistant who immediately told me that i was going to have surgery to have a stent put in. The following week I had a stent put in. As soon as i woke up from surgery, i knew something wasnt right. I tried to tell the nurses but they said to "give it time." I had the surgery on a friday. By Monday I was throwing up and begging for the stent to be removed. On Wednesday, I ended up in the ER where I was told that I had a UTI and my kidney was still enlarged. They pumped me full of antibiotics, toridol and morphine (2 doses). After the 2nd dose of morphine, the pain started to let up. On Friday, the urologist removed my stent. He informed me that I had scare tissue and that was what was causing my kidney to be enlarged. When he removed my stent, I immediately felt a horrible pain in my right groin. I told the dr and he said that was normal. I had never had a stent so I just took his word for it. Well, its been 2 weeks since the stent removal and the pain is not letting up. I have a follow up with the urologist next week and I'm hoping for some answers and relief. I should add that I have never had kidney issues and have never had kidney stones. Any suggestions?????
Eickleberry1. siueballer30
Posted
i know this is 4 months old but im reading on this thread in hopes i find someone who has similar issues i had several 8 mm stones i had the extracorprel shock done two months ago and it didnt work so few weeks from that i had to have another started to have some pain in my right side of back went to er and said i still had stones so called my urologist made a appt i asked so can we just go in there and get them out he said yes and that it was going to cause more discomfort im like look i just want these gone we agreed had to get permission from cardiologist and my PCP got that and well december 13 i went in for the uretroscope forgive my spelling and when i came to from the procedure they said that there was no stones there so i got no stents mind you every one of the procedures i said i just had i never once got a stent for the stones to pass and im sitting here thinking if i passed that stone i know i would of felt it from the looks of it on this thread everyone here who has stones knows you feel a stone when its passing but im 4 days into this recovery just from them looking into my kindeys and im in excrutiating pain that barley my pain meds even keep it barable everytime i try to tell the drs something is wrong i get blown off like im lying i am actually terrified i will feel this way forever and no one believe me
Eickleberry1.
Posted
and i would like to add im a 38 year old female
laura1121 VickyC.
Posted
Vicky,
i feel your pain. I am the same age and had a 10mm stone. i had my stent placed Sept 1st and removed Sept 7th. I have had pain in my bladder for over a month now. The doctors keep telling me its normal and will subside. i am so depressed because i feel like I'm never going to be back to the way i was before the kidney stone. It is so discouraging.
Eickleberry1. laura1121
Posted
have you went back to the urologist for it i know that the stent has a coil like thing that sits in your bladder it may have rubbed around in the bladder and did something
grace04297 VickyC.
Edited
I hope you are no longer dealing with pain, but I came upon this as I have been feeling a aching pain in my Ureter where it connects to my bladder. I unfortunately am only 19 and I’ve had 2 stones ( 3&4 mm) removed back in August of this year. They did the lithotripsy shockwave which caused my ureter to swell not allowing the fragments to pass. I then had to have a second procedure done, which was where they had to do invasive and get everything out. They put a stent in for 10 days. Worst pain ever... I couldn’t sleep, move much, or do any easy activity I should have been able to do. I got it removed on the 10th day and felt immediate relief. I have not had an isuue up until yesterday 10/19/23. The light aching pain started and has not gone away.
cedwards7 grace04297
Edited
Hi! I am 24 and had my first kidney stone removed a month ago. I had to go back into the ER the next day because the pain was much worse. They said the stent was misplaced and removed it 2 days after it was inserted. I am still having flank pain and groin pain. Have you found anything out?
Eickleberry1. cedwards7
Posted
hey im a frequent kidneystone person did they reinsert the stent if so its normal to have some discomfort with the stent and when removed you should feel better another thing did the kidney stone pass or removed if they did not reinsert the stent and you still had the stones or fragments you could be passing the stone and that is a very painful thing to pass word of advice avoid all cranberries and cranberry juice they say its good for urinary health but for us people who have or get stones it has a enzyme that actually causes stones found that out the hard way im here on this thread trying to figure out after 3 procedures to remove several 8 mm stones that i never once got a stent went thru two shockwave and the last one on December 13 they did the ureterscope to remove the stones that the xray said i had and when they went in they said nothing was there and i didnt get a stent but here it is the 17th and i am in the most horrid pain on my left flank side they gave me norco 10s ketorlac and its barley keeping the pain barable these three procedures was the first time i never got a stent every other time i got one so im hoping to find someone here who has had that issue
if i would of passed those stones i would of felt it