“What size of kidney stone requires surgery?”
I am a 66 year old male. I want to know what size of kidney stone requires surgery?
5 Answers
It depends on size, location and symptoms. Please seek urologist opinion
Kidney stones less than 0.5 cm in largest dimension have a chance to be passed spontaneously, but rear without symptoms. Very rarely, stones up to 1.0 cm also could be attempted to manage without surgery, but with some manipulations in urethras or by lithotripsy procedure (stone fragmentation and removal). It’s an invasive procedure, but still not a surgery.
Typically, a stone that is 2 mm or less has a 85% chance of passage alone, 3 mm a 75% chance, a 4 mm has a 60% chance to pass a 5 mm to 6 mL is 40 to 50% a 78 mm is 20% and anything above that typically does not pass. We also do surgery on 2 mm stones that just won’t progress and continue to cause pain. In my practice, I typically give people at least two weeks to pass unless they’re doubled over in pain.
Dr. Niko Lailas
Dr. Niko Lailas
Small stone 6-7 mm causing no obstruction can be treated medically. Larger stone causing obstruction will need intervention. Alternative to surgery, many, i.e., shock wave and many endoscopic approaches.
Spontaneous passage of stone depends on size and location of stone. Usually, stones with less than 5 mm in diameter pass spontaneously. Spontaneous passage is rare for stones more than 10 mm in diameter. Proximal ureteral stones are also less likely to pass spontaneously.
