When you’re in pain, speedy relief is what you need. At WakeMed’s Kidney Stone Center, speedy relief is what you get. Available twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year, the WakeMed “Stone Phone” rings continuously, receiving calls from patients both near and far, experiencing painful kidney stones and desperate for immediate treatment.

A kidney stone is a crystallization of compounds in the urine that eventually accumulate, bind together and form a stone. They usually form inside the kidney, yet most people don’t realize they have stones until the stones decide to move. That’s when the pain hits like a bolt.

Alan’s History of Stones

On Thursday, January 13, 2022, Alan found himself debilitated by a familiar pain that had ebbed and flowed over 40 years of his life: kidney stone pain.

“I had the dreaded flank pain, indicative of kidney stones, so my number one job in life became getting rid of that stone.”

Months earlier, Alan had been riding an elevator at a WakeMed hospital where his wife is a neonatal intensive care nurse.

“I noticed a sign in the elevator for the Stone Phone. I took note of the number for any future episodes.”

Fast forwarding to that day, January 13, Alan called the Stone Phone desperate for relief. He left a message and hoped that someone would help — soon.

“Within an hour and half, I had received a return call, shared my health history, obtained a prescription for pain relief and picked it up from the pharmacy. It was some of the best service ever.”

The Stone Belt

We, in North Carolina, live in what is known as the ‘stone belt”’ a hub of southeastern states where there are increased risk factors for kidney stone formation. A lot of these kidney stone risk factors are lifestyle based. Making the necessary changes can help with preventing and reducing the frequency of kidney stones.

Alan says, “My stones, apparently, are calcium oxalate stones, and they are due to diet. I grew up in the eastern part of North Carolina which I’ve been told is a kidney stone belt. I try to drink a lot of water. I don’t drink coffee regularly, but I do like red meat, and I have a little bit of an addiction to soda. Still,” Alan says with a chuckle, “I don’t feel the punishment fits the crime.”

More than 80% of kidney stones are made of calcium oxalate and calcium phosphate.

The Kidney Stone Center and the Stone Phone

The only hospital in the Triangle to offer immediate help for Kidney Stones — the WakeMed Kidney Stone Center teams strive to offer same- or next-day diagnosis and treatment. Depending on a patient’s history of kidney stones and symptoms, this means being able to call in prescriptions right away, bypassing the emergency room and directly admitting to the hospital for treatment, and/or arranging same-day appointments with one of our board-certified urologists.

Alan’s Medical Procedure

Once Alan’s pain was under control, he was scheduled on January 27, 2022 for stone removal with WakeMed urologist, Carmin Kalorin, MD. This involved a cystoscopy and left ureteroscopy with laser lithotripsy and basket stone extraction for ureteral and renal stones with placement of left double-j ureteral stent.

“My urologist, Dr. Carmin Kalorin came up with the concept of the Stone Phone. That was a plus. Not only was I calling the Kidney Stone Center Stone Phone when I made my initial call, but I was also calling my doctor’s office.

“I had my procedure at WakeMed Raleigh Campus. It was about a 45-minute outpatient surgery, and I went home about an hour later. My only concern was that they had put in a temporary ureteral stent. I’m 65 and not used to foreign appliances in my body. Turns out, it was no big deal though. Fear of the unknown was worse than the actual unknown.”

Ureteroscopy Treatment for Kidney Stones

There are various non-surgical and minimally-invasive surgical procedures for the treatment of kidney stones. Alan received a treatment to clear out his stones. With this procedure, small flexible telescopes are used to access the urethra, bladder and ureter. The scope is carefully guided into the ureter and/or kidney where the stone is actually seen by the surgeon. It can then be broken up with a laser fiber, and the individual fragments are retrieved with a micro-basket. After the procedure is done, a soft plastic stent is left in place to allow the ureter to heal until the postsurgical swelling has resolved. The stent is later removed with a simple, in-office procedure.

Removal of the Stent

Alan was very concerned about additional pain during stent removal, but, again, he found it was nothing to worry about.

“I was afraid when it was time to remove the ureteral stent, but it turned out to be 30 seconds long and nothing to worry about. Today, I’m cleaned out, and I feel great.”

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Do You Have a Kidney Stone? Call Us.

In the event that you have a kidney stone, you are welcome to call the Stone Phone at 919-350-ROCK (7625). All calls that are determined not to be related to a kidney stone will be referred for further evaluation per the provider’s discretion.

Would You Like Help with Diet?

Most kidney stones are caused by diet and can be relieved with a few changes. Our licensed, registered dietitians are committed to providing evidence-based, scientific nutrition advice for those with chronic stones and other conditions.

For more information, or to schedule an appointment, please call or have your physician FAX a referral to us. Insurance coverage and costs may vary.

Phone:  919-350-7000, option 1, then option 3
FAX:  919-350-8959