Ureteral Calculi: Case Study

Running head: URETERAL CALCULI: CASE STUDY
URETERAL CALCULI: CASE STUDY
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URETERAL CALCULI: CASE STUDY1
Introduction
The following set of questions and answers demonstrate key treatment and screening
components to be considered for the treatment of ureteral calculi in a 25 year old female, SR.
Question 1
A number of health issues and conditions can cause a female patient to urinate blood,
namely, urinary tract infection (UTIs), kidney stones or ureteral calculi, cancer and
endometriosis. While UTIs are largely associated with pelvic, as observed in the given case
study, this cause can be ruled since SR does not demonstrate UTI-like symptom like urgency to
urinate, foul smelling or cloudy urine or prevalence of microbial colonies in her urine analysis
(Bolenz et al., 2018). There is no presentation of endometriosis symptoms of dysmenorrhea or
observed structural abnormalities like cysts in SR’s pelvic examination findings. The patient SR
also does not present renal cancer symptoms of lumps, anemia, sudden weight loss or cancerous
cells in her pelvic, physical and urine examinations (Subak & Grady, 2017).
The most accurate diagnosis for SR will be ureteral calculi or renal stones, due to her
demonstration of prevalent symptoms like uncontrolled and extreme pain in the abdominal flank
radiating to the groin region and red blood cell (RBC) content grossly higher than the standard
number of four in the urine. Additionally, inadequate water intake and dehydration are key risk
factors of ureteral calculi – as demonstrated by SR in her history of renal stone incidences during
summer as well as her habits of taking minimal water breaks (Scotland et al., 2018).
Question 2
The process of intravenous pyelogram (IVP) comprises of an X-ray examination
involving administration of contrasting substances for the purpose of evaluation of organs like

URETERAL CALCULI: CASE STUDY2
the urinary bladder, ureters and the kidney and is prevalently used to identify underlying cause of
hematuria. Before conducting an IVP, the key questions to ask to SR include: whether she is
allergic to seafood, iodine or contrast dye and whether she is pregnant. Individuals with
dehydration or diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, and hypertension are susceptible
to acquire kidney failure due to IVP. To prevent the same, individuals like SR may be need to
perform a creatinine blood tests which the practitioner and nephrologist must evaluate prior to
IVP administration (Rosenkrantz et al., 2019).
Question 3
Since patient SR is allergic to contrast dye, alternative radiological examinations which
she can participate in place of IVP, include: ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging and
computed tomography of her pelvic region. These alternatives are safe for SR since they do not
require in contrast dye for producing radiological images.
Question 4
The most common types of kidney stones are calcium oxalate (a) and calcium phosphate
(b). In the case of SR, struvite (c) uric acid (d) and cystine € stones are rare since they are found
prevalently in UTI, males and in individuals with cystinuria – a genetic disorder (Nyman, Sterner
& Aspelin, 2018).
Question 5
It has been evidenced that the dehydration and a personal medical history of kidney
stones are some of the key risk factors of kidney stones. As per the case study, it is known that
the patient SR engages in long hours of outdoor work and drinks very little water in between her
occupation – all of which, are likely to cause dehydration during summers and thus pave the way