Tuesday, April 15, 2008
- You lie on a water-filled cushion, and the surgeon uses X-rays or ultrasound tests to precisely locate the stone. High-energy sound waves pass through your body without injuring it and break the stone into small pieces. These small pieces move through the urinary tract and out of the body more easily than a large stone.
- The process takes about an hour.
- You may receive sedatives or local anesthesia.
- Your surgeon may use a stent when your stones are larger than 2.5 cm. A stent is a small, short tube of flexible plastic mesh that holds the ureter open. This helps the small stone pieces to pass without blocking the ureter.
It will be an out-patient procedure and will take only a few hours then i'll be sent home. It's a non-invasive procedure and the safest procedure they say so I have nothing to worry about. But, being the real me, who's afraid of hospitals and the stuff that goes with it, I guess i'm quite afraid of the procedure. I'll be under anesthesia so I won't be able to feel anything. I have full confidence and trust in my doctor naman. So why am I feeling this way? Maybe because i'm really "duwag lang" about the whole thing, lol. I just hope and pray that it will be a success meaning that the stones will totally be broken down to small pieces and eventually will be flushed-out of my body. I hope that it will not have an effect on my kidneys as I was having this strange idea that the shockwaves will sort of "damage" my kidneys. But my doctor, made it very clear to me that it will not in anyway have a bad effect on my kidney or any part of my body. It's a perfectly safe procedure daw. So, with that, I agreed na rin.
So, guys, I will have to humbly ask for your prayers for the success of this procedure on Saturday. Your prayers will surely give me enough courage in going through this :)
