About stone formation in the body has been known since the time of Hippocrates – father of modern medicine. A separate line in the statistics of diseases is occupied by urolithiasis, and a stone in the ureter – this is a separate form of this disease. Pathology was diagnosed in 3 – 4% of the world's population, but according to doctors, this figure is even higher. Often the disease is asymptomatic and is detected during a routine examination. In the ureter, stones are formed very rarely, they are usually localized in the kidneys, sometimes – in the bladder. On estet-portal.com read about the causes of the formation of stones in the ureter, and also about the features of the clinical picture of the disease.
- Main causes of ureteral stones
- Pathogenetic changes in the body characteristic of the disease
- Clinical presentation and main pathological symptomss
Main causes of ureteral stones
Most stones in the ureter come from the renal pelvis. The main part of the calculi lingers in the area of the connection of the ureter with the bladder.
Other "critical" segments are located in the area of articulation with the kidney, the passage of large iliac veins and arteries.
Primary stones in the ureter are rare in the following conditions:
- anatomically determined narrowing, curvature of the given structure of the urinary system;
- adhesive processes;
- neoplasms;
- inflammatory lesions;
- surgical interventions, scars, remnants of suture material, blood clots, fragments of necrotic tissue.
Secondary stones in the ureter – a consequence of nephrolithiasis with the localization of stones in the renal pelvis. The main etiological factor of pathology – metabolic disturbances leading to excessive accumulation of stone-forming compounds.
It's calcium, phosphate, and uric acid. Such disorders are provoked by systematic violations of the diet, taking medications.
The following factors also cause stone formation:
- impaired microcirculation in the vessels of the kidneys;
- obstacles to normal urine flow due to prostate enlargement, cysts;
- chronic infectious processes affecting the organs of the urinary system;
- endocrine pathologies;
- insufficient fluid intake in hot climates, increased physical activity;
- systemic metabolic pathologies;
- prolonged immobilization.
Ureteric stones are caused by malabsorption, reabsorption in the renal tubules, and calcium metabolism.
The disease is often diagnosed in members of the same family. This indicates genetic prerequisites for the formation of stones due to hereditary metabolic disorders.
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signal?Pathogenetic changes in the body characteristic of the disease
There are several theories of development of urolithiasis. Matrix – calls the initial cause of the disease the bacterial flora that provokes the inflammatory process, microcirculation disorders, the synthesis of a number of pathological enzymes.
Some microorganisms are able to form a phosphate shell, which is the basis for further stone formation in the ureter.
Other theories (colloidal, ionic, crystallization and inhibitory) explain the formation of calculi by violations of chemical composition, stability, pH level of urine. But these assumptions regarding the occurrence of stones have been tested in the laboratory in vitro, and the formation of crystals in the ureter in vivo has its own characteristics. Undoubtedly, violations of the rheological properties, the chemical composition of urine serve as the basis for the pathogenesis of the disease. But the exact mechanism of such disorders has not been fully elucidated.
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Clinical presentation and main pathological symptoms
Symptoms of the disease depend on the size of the stones. Small stones, with a diameter of up to 1 – 1.5 mm, freely pass through the ureter, enter the bladder and are excreted through the urinary canal. Sometimes this process is accompanied by burning, aggravated by urination, itching around the external opening of the urethra.
A large stone lodged in the ureter causes the "classic" symptoms of renal colic.
There is a cramping unbearable pain in the lower back on the affected side. Pain impulses radiate to the perineum, the inner surface of the thigh.
Ureteric stones are characterized by a false urge to urinate, and bladder emptying is accompanied by severe pain.
When the epithelium of the ureter or urethra is damaged, the urine turns red due to blood impurities.
If a stone in the ureter has caused obstruction of the urinary tract, there is a high risk of kidney failure due to delayed urine output from the kidney. Colic is an indication for hospitalization of the patient in a hospital, where measures are taken to alleviate the symptoms of the disease, extract or remove the calculus.
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