Dr. Sanjeev Gulati

Lower Urinary tract obstruction refers to a condition of hindrance to urinary flow from bladder outwards. This can occur in all the age groups and affect either sex. The symptoms can be poor urine flow, intermittent flow, straining to pass urine or empty bladder, sense of incomplete emptying of bladder, difficulty in starting urination. Other problems can be increased urine frequency and difficulty to hold on with or without occasional urine leak in clothes. The cause and treatment vary in different age groups.

Few common reasons behind Lower urinary Tract Obstruction:

1. Congenital Urethral Stricture and PUV: These defects can be detected either before or after birth and need correction at earliest to avoid long-term complications. It is usually brought to attention by parents who observe abnormal urine flow pattern of their child OR found out during evaluation for repeated urinary tract infections.

2. Neurogenic Bladder: This is caused due to defects of nerves that are responsible for controlling bladder function. This can be due to diseases of brain, spinal cord or peripheral nerves. These defects can occur by birth or later in life. It is very important to take early consult to avoid long-term complications and progression to renal failure.

3. Urethral Stricture: This is narrowing in a long tube that starts from bladder to the external urinary opening. It can be idiopathic, post-traumatic, or due to urethral infections. Usually, a person is able to recognise poor urine flow and bring it to the attention of urologist. Treatment for stricture depends on various factors and range from simple endoscopic surgery to open surgeries.

4. Bladder Neck Obstruction: Bladder neck is a network or a group of muscles that connect the bladder to the urethra. The muscles tighten to hold urine in the bladder, and relax as they release it through the urethra. Urinary tract obstruction occurs when there are abnormalities blocking the bladder neck that restricts its opening during urination.

5. BPH: This occurs due to enlarged prostate obstruction urine flow out of bladder. Prostate enlargement is mostly age-related and rarely due to prostatic tumors. Urinary stones. This can be usually recognized by sudden obstruction to urine flow in person who was voiding normally. These episodes might be recurrent due to movement of stone in between bladder and urethra.

6. Bladder Tumors: The are mostly characterized by blood in urine. Sometimes there might be blood clots that obstruct the urine flow. Phimosis: Usually occurring post-puberty, it is referred to as the inability to retract the glans (the sensitive structure at the end of the penis). It is a condition in which the distal foreskin, which was previously retractable, is unable to retract anymore.

7. Phimosis: Phimosis is another major reason behind urinary tract obstructions.

Renal stone or kidney stone is the most common problem that is found in different people these days. It is mainly a hard mass that accumulates either in one or both the kidneys that can cause pain and another discomfort. Renal stones are classified into two types and these are:

1. Calcium Stones and
2. Uric Acid Stones.

Symptoms Of Renal Stone
Many times pain in the lower section of the stomach can be due to many reasons such as acidity, but long term pain can be considered as a symptom of renal stone. This happens when the stone moves from the kidney to the urinary tract or also when the stones grow. Some other symptoms apart from the pain are:

1. The colour of the urine is turned into red or brown as it contains blood,
2. The urge of urination increases,
3. Nausea and Vomiting at times.

Causes Of Renal Stone
The medical term used for the renal stone is renal calculi or urolithiasis or nephrolithiasis. The problem can occur due to a number of reasons and a few among them are:

1. Increased calcium amount in the body,
2. Genetic factor,
3. Disease or infection in the kidney or the urinary,
4. Consumption of alcohol and also some oxalate food items,
5. Diseases such as high blood pressure, hypercalciuria or gout,
6. Inflammatory disease of intestine and stomach,
7. Side effects of wrong medication.

Home Remedies By Ayurveda For Curing Renal Stone
There are some of the home remedies available that are suggested by the Ayurveda:

1. Treating Renal Stone With Kidney Beans
   1. Add 4 litres of water to 60 grams of kidney beans.
   2. Now heat the mixture for about 4-5 hours.
   3. Now strain the mixture through a muslin cloth into a container.
   4. Keep the fluid aside to cool down.
   5. After the fluid cools down completely, start drinking one glass of the fluid every 2 hours.
   6. Make sure that the fluid should be consumed within 24 hours.
   7. Do this for a week time.
2. Treating Renal Stone With Basil Leaves And Honey
   1. Crush about 10-15 basil leaves and make a paste of it.
   2. Take out the juice of about 1 tablespoon of the paste.
   3. Now add one teaspoon honey to the juice and mix them well.
   4. Consume this mixture every day once.
3. Treating Renal Stone With Pomegranate Seeds And Horse Gram
   1. Add about half litre water to 1 cup horse gram.
   2. Now heat it till the water comes down to about 1/5th and then strain the liquid.
   3. Crush some pomegranate seeds and add about 2 tablespoons to the liquid.
   4. Drink this mixture daily.
4. Apart from these remedies, drinking apple juice regularly and doing regular exercise also helps in getting rid of renal stone. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult an ayurveda.