Kidney Stones

Tghanse

New Member
I have always wanted to be a pilot since I was 12, after the first time I went up in a Cessna 172. The only thing that has been holding me back is the expenses of training. I finally decided that I was going to take out loans and get it done. But I have passed three kidney stones over the past two years.. no fun, wouldn't recommend it.. and I just had another scan done and they found that I still have multiple small stones in my left kidney. I am questioning myself now if I should go through with my dream.. so I'm looking for words of wisdom here, are kidney stones grounds to get your medical taken away? I have taken a few lessons and I loved every second of it. Any comments would be greatly appreciated.
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I guess my question is - why would kidney stones stop anyone from pursuing a career/dream??? they're there...and then they pass thru the system....

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Are kidney stones medically disqualifying?

Are they surgically operable/removable?

I really don't know anything about kidney stones, I've never heard if someone has ever been denied a medical because of them.
 
Kidney Stones are surgically removable, I actually had to have that done with the first stone. But that is exactly my question.. are they medically disqualifying? I understand that you have to get a clearance after passing one, but I don't know if the fact that I have some still in my kidney will disqualify me? And if they determain that it is a reoccurring problem if it would be denied then?
 
I knew a pilot for CHQ who had stones while holding a line. He was off the line (I don't think he lost his medical) when he had to have them removed (three times I think). As much as I am not a fan of them, AOPA can help you figure out what you need to do. Good luck.

Ethan
 
I looked on aopa.. founds exactly what I didn't want to.
The presence of a kidney stone is disqualifying for the issuance of a medical certificate. You will need a status report from your urologist. The report should summarize your medical history, including a comment about your recent treatment for the stones. Also, a current report of either an IVP, KUB, or ultrasound indicating the absence of stones will be needed. With a favorable report, the AME may issue your certificate.
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I looked on aopa.. founds exactly what I didn't want to.
The presence of a kidney stone is disqualifying for the issuance of a medical certificate. You will need a status report from your urologist. The report should summarize your medical history, including a comment about your recent treatment for the stones. Also, a current report of either an IVP, KUB, or ultrasound indicating the absence of stones will be needed. With a favorable report, the AME may issue your certificate.
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Don't let that discourage you. Give it a shot anyway. There are all kinds of loop holes when it comes to getting a medical. I know a guy who has had brain surgery for uncontrollable seizures and my be capable of obtaining a medical in a couple of years. Just be up front and honest with the AME and see what happens.

Good Luck.
 
If you have kidney stones, you will need to have them removed, wait a period of time and then re-take your medical.
 
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I guess my question is - why would kidney stones stop anyone from pursuing a career/dream??? they're there...and then they pass thru the system....

???????????????????

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Have you ever had one? If you were to have an attack while flying a plane it would totally disable you. I couldn't even drive a car when it hit, much less fly an airplane.

That is why they are disqualifying unless it is just an isolated incident. I would never fly solo if I had an x-ray showing other stones in the kidneys. You would be playing Russian roulette. And that is why they will never issue him a medical as long as he has a continual problem with them.
 
That just about sums it up! When I had them (actually 1 stone), it caused me to keel over and after a period of time, I crawled to my next door neighbor's house and asked him to take me to the hospital. He was a really big guy, so he scooped off the floor like a baby, just to give you an idea of the pain that I was in.

I remember sweating and was unable to sit upright...
 
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That just about sums it up! When I had them (actually 1 stone), it caused me to keel over and after a period of time, I crawled to my next door neighbor's house and asked him to take me to the hospital. He was a really big guy, so he scooped off the floor like a baby, just to give you an idea of the pain that I was in.

I remember sweating and was unable to sit upright...

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I hear ya!

I only passed one myself. No others in there. Told about it on my last medical as an isolated incident over a year ago and have never heard anything else about it.

Since it was an isolated incident, the ME asked me about it when I saw him (his assistant had done all the paperwork) and asked me if I had put in on the paperwork. He asked me in such a way that it led me to believe he was going to tell me not to put in on there if I hadn't already since it was an isolated incident.

But I was totally up front, and especially would be with a chronic probem. It is a very dangerous thing if you are a pilot.
 
Yeah, they hurt something fierce. The first time I got one I was living in Brazil and all I could do was lay in a ball on the floor whenever I wasn't throwing up! I came back to the states and they had to do surgery to remove them, I ended up having 11 stones.. and the one that had entered by tract was so big that it blocked all function to my left Kidney. It's weird that basically over night you can go from having perfect health to having these freaking stones! They are only forming in my left kidney, and I guess I have some cists in my kidney… I’m trying to convince my doctor to remove it, but I don’t think he’s going to bite.

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I had started working out about 3 or 4 months before and had started taking coral calcium as a suppliment before it hit. I am thinking taking the coral calcium is what did it as they are just basically a calcium stone. But I could be wrong about that. I thought it was too much to be a coincidence.

After all the "testimonies" here, I guess it is no wonder it is a disqualifying condition.
 
From what I've heard, passing a kidney stone is akin to having a baby (pain-wise). So you guys out there who've passed one (or more!) you have my sympathies! What an awful experience!
 
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From what I've heard, passing a kidney stone is akin to having a baby (pain-wise). So you guys out there who've passed one (or more!) you have my sympathies! What an awful experience!

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I have heard many women say the kidney stones were worse.

Ouch!
 
I have had them in the past. I was given a 1st class medical with 2 existing stones. I just have to stop flying if I have any symptoms.
 
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I have had them in the past. I was given a 1st class medical with 2 existing stones. I just have to stop flying if I have any symptoms.

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That is amazing. Especially in the light of this:

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The presence of a kidney stone is disqualifying for the issuance of a medical certificate. You will need a status report from your urologist. The report should summarize your medical history, including a comment about your recent treatment for the stones. Also, a current report of either an IVP, KUB, or ultrasound indicating the ABSENCE of stones will be needed. With a favorable report, the AME may issue your certificate.

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Seems you slipped by somehow. The only problem with that is that the "symptoms" can be disabling.

After my attack, if I still had stones in my kidneys I would never fly solo or without another pilot aboard.
 
I had 2 in a period of 6 months. Both times I was able to tell it was coming a few hours in advance. Not to get too graphic, but it feels like somebody has kicked you in the groin before the actual real "fun" begins.

I got a 3rd class without a hitch, and I still have one more stone left. I just told the Doc that I know when I am getting one, and I would have a small window of a couple of hours to land before the pain really starts.
 
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How do you get kidney stones? Is it something you eat or do? I hope I never get kidney stones.

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Who gets kidney stones?

For unknown reasons, the number of people in the United States with kidney stones has been increasing over the past 30 years. The prevalence of stone-forming disease rose from 3.8 percent in the late 1970s to 5.2 percent in the late 1980s and early 1990s. White Americans are more prone to develop kidney stones than African Americans. Stones occur more frequently in men. The prevalence of kidney stones rises dramatically as men enter their 40s and continues to rise into their 70s. For women, the prevalence of kidney stones peaks in their 50s. Once a person gets more than one stone, others are likely to develop.


What causes kidney stones?

Doctors do not always know what causes a stone to form. While certain foods may promote stone formation in people who are susceptible, scientists do not believe that eating any specific food causes stones to form in people who are not susceptible.

A person with a family history of kidney stones may be more likely to develop stones. Urinary tract infections, kidney disorders such as cystic kidney diseases, and certain metabolic disorders such as hyperparathyroidism are also linked to stone formation.

In addition, more than 70 percent of people with a rare hereditary disease called renal tubular acidosis develop kidney stones.

Cystinuria and hyperoxaluria are two other rare, inherited metabolic disorders that often cause kidney stones. In cystinuria, too much of the amino acid cystine, which does not dissolve in urine, is voided. This can lead to the formation of stones made of cystine. In patients with hyperoxaluria, the body produces too much of the salt oxalate. When there is more oxalate than can be dissolved in the urine, the crystals settle out and form stones.

Hypercalciuria is inherited. It is the cause of stones in more than half of patients. Calcium is absorbed from food in excess and is lost into the urine. This high level of calcium in the urine causes crystals of calcium oxalate or calcium phosphate to form in the kidneys or urinary tract.

Other causes of kidney stones are hyperuricosuria which is a disorder of uric acid metabolism, gout, excess intake of vitamin D, urinary tract infections, and blockage of the urinary tract. Certain diuretics which are commonly called water pills or calcium-based antacids may increase the risk of forming kidney stones by increasing the amount of calcium in the urine.

Calcium oxalate stones may also form in people who have a chronic inflammation of the bowel or who have had an intestinal bypass operation, or ostomy surgery. As mentioned above, struvite stones can form in people who have had a urinary tract infection. People who take the protease inhibitor indinavir, a drug used to treat HIV infection, are at risk of developing kidney stones.
 
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