An elderly man in Chiayi County recently had 24 stones removed from his bladder that a urologist surmised had been there for at least 10 years.
Yang Ming Hospital urologist Huang Tsai-pei (黃才倍) yesterday said the man had rarely visited a urologist and did not know he had so many bladder stones.
People with bladder stones usually have no notion of them except for experiencing voiding difficulties or blood in the urine, particularly because the bladder has great elasticity to stretch out to hold urine, he said.
Photo courtesy of Huang Tsai-pei
The man had about one liter of urine drained out of his bladder before the stones were taken out, Huang said, adding that removing stones can be difficult, as they can get stuck in ureters and cause severe pain, forcing patients to seek urgent medical help.
The man had hard bladder stones with smooth surfaces, which could not be shattered via non-invasive method as easily as more loosely accreted stones in other patients, Huang said.
Surgery was used to remove the stones, he said, adding that the procedure lasted only about an hour and the man was recovering well.
The formation of such smooth-surfaced stones was like “rolling glutinous rice balls,” where deposits crystalize layer by layer and get thicker, Huang said.
“If you cut them open, you’ll see layered patterns like growth rings of trees,” he added.
Stone formation can result from insufficient water intake, untreated enlarged prostates, chronic urinary retention or genetic predisposition, Huang said, calling on middle-aged and older people to regularly see a urologist for health checkups or prompt medical attention.
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