Tuesday, July 15, 2014
St Joseph's Health Care London
St. Joseph's helps Patients prevent Kidney Stones
Because 50 percent of the one in ten Canadians who develop kidney stones will suffer recurrences, a team in the Urology Centre at St. Joseph's Hospital have created a special clinic, one of the first of its kind in Canada, to help patients prevent future stones.
St. Joseph's chief of urology Dr. Hassan Razvi and his multidisciplinary team established the kidney stone prevention clinic to treat patients through this unique model of care. Patients are assessed in a single appointment by a nephrologist - a specialist with expertise in medical conditions that affet the kidneys - a urologist for surgical and treatment consultation, and a registered dietitian.
"Most kidney stones can be prevented through a combination of diet, fluid intake, medication and other lifestyle changes," says Dr. Razvi. "Prevention and treatment plans are determined based on the cause and type of stones." Patients are also evaluated on their medical and diet history, blood tests and urine samples taken over a 24 hour period.
When medication may play a role in a patient's prevention nephrologist Dr. Nabil Sultan selects the best option and monitors the patient and the treatments effectiveness. "If a patient has multiple kidney stones, or they form certain types of stones this could mean they have an underlying problem with their body metabolism and medications can help," explains Dr. Sultan.
St. Joseph's has a long history of innovative advances in the treatment and diagnosis of kidney stones. In 1990 St. Joseph's became the second hospital in Ontario to offer shock wave lithotripsy, a non-invasive way to break up kidney stones. The service quickly became the busiest in the world. In 1993, St. Joseph's urologists were the first to treat a human for kidney stones using a holmium laser, a treatment now used around the world.
"St. Joseph's treats a large number of patients for kidney stones, many of them complex cases, and we recognized a great need for a comprehensive prevention clinic," says Dr. Razvi. "For these patients, the ability to see all of their health care team members at a single appointment has been well-received. As an academic teaching hospital this clinic also provides opportunities for future research into the causes of kidney stones and potentially new treatments."
Media Contact:
Kelsi Break
Communication Consultant
519-646-6100 ext 64792 pager 16529
kelsi.break@sjhc.london.on.ca
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