In several medical procedures, surgeons may need to place stents, metal or plastic tubes inside body ducts and valves to keep them open. A ureteral stent is a stent placed in the ureter valve to keep the ureter open. A ureteral stent is also called a kidney stent.
The urine passes out of the body through the ureter valve. If due to any obstruction or kidney stones ureter gets blocked, the passage of urine is interrupted. When the ureter gets blocked, passing urine becomes difficult, and retained urine causes pain in the lower abdomen or pelvis region.
How to relieve ureteral stent pain – Does It Leads To Sleepless Night?
A ureteral stent helps the urine pass from the kidney to the bladder. Sometimes instead of the plain stent, stent coated with medicines may be placed to treat infections or inflammation.
The pros and cons of ureteral stents
Ureteral stents can be very uncomfortable, yet they are placed by doctors to serve a greater purpose. If urine is not let out of the body, it can lead to internal poisoning and death. To save the life of patients with kidney blockage conditions several times, doctors find placing a ureteral stent the best option.
In the beginning, managing activities with ureteral stents can be difficult and extremely time-consuming. As days pass patient grows more used to the stents and is able to conduct bodily activities more normally. Patients who have ureteral stents placed inside them can experience the following:
- Some blood in the urine
- Incontinence or loss of urination control
- Flank pain or pelvic pain
- Pain while passing out urine
- The urgency to urinate repeatedly
- Frequent urination
Serious ureter stent pain
Some discomfiture or pain with a ureter stent is normal; however, if the stent gets displaced or causes infection, a serious condition may arise. The pain can increase, and excessive blood may start coming out from the urinary passage.
The patient may feel nonemptiness sensation in the bladder, burning, increasing pelvis or flank pain, fever, and feeling of overall sickness. If extreme pain or discomfort condition occurs, the doctor should be called in at once to correct the stent problem.
Follow the doctor’s prescription to manage ureter stent pain.
After placing a stent, doctors prescribe painkillers along with other medicines to manage normal ureter stent pain. It is important to follow the doctor’s advice on ureter stent management and take medicines on time.
Not just pain killers, but it is also essential to take the kidney medicines, antibiotics, anti-inflammatory medications, vitamins advised by doctors to overcome kidney condition at the earliest. During the recovery period, the patient can be advised not to lift heavy weights or indulge in strenuous activities. The doctor may resort to medicinal or surgical therapy to restore the kidney condition.
When blockage in the kidney is removed by medication or surgical means, the stent in the ureters is no more required. The stents are removed in due time after no more blockage is observable in the kidney.
Doctors may also place stents that can be removed on their own by the patient with the help of a loop. Some pain is felt few days after stent removal. It is best to follow the doctor’s advice during and after stent removal to manage the condition as best as possible.
Getting good sleep with ureter stents
It is important to learn how to get good sleep at night, even with stents placed inside the ureter. The body shows faster healing when it gets the required hours of sleep per day. It is true that with ureter stents, there is the problem of frequent urination and the urge to urinate again and again.
If the patient has to get up repeatedly during the night, then sleep gets utterly disturbed. Lack of sleep at night makes the patient feel sleepy all through the day. To take care of this problem, the patient can have enough amount of water during the day and less water near bedtime.
Blood spots in the urine should appear only for the first few days after the placement of stents in the ureter. After that, if the patient is taking sufficient water, the urine color should be pale yellow.
Maintaining cleanliness and hygiene.
Patients with kidney blockage problems face a very challenging situation of overcoming the condition. The simple act of passing urine becomes painful. In no condition should the patient give up hope?
Kidney obstructions are curable, and the pain is temporary. If the patient takes good care of health and hygiene during the recuperation period, recovery is faster. Bad health and poor hygiene can aggravate illness conditions by causing infections that can further complicate the situation.
It is imperative at all times and especially during the recovery period, to consume wholesome meals, wear clean, disinfected clothes, and follow hygiene routines.