A kidney stone is a hard deposit of dissolved minerals that occurs in the kidney. It can cause blood in the urine and be very painful when passing through the urethra. Though painful, kidney stones are not dangerous.
Some kidney stones can get passed out on their own. Others which do not can be removed both surgically and through non-invasive procedures. There are four types of treatments or non-invasive procedures which may be performed:
Extracorporeal Shockwave Lithotripsy (ESWL): This is a non-invasive procedure that is used widely to remove small kidney stones. Not cuts are made for this procedure. It relies on non-electrical shockwaves that are transmitted through the body to hit the kidney stones. This helps to break down the stones into smaller pieces. The procedure might have to be repeated again if it does not give results in the first try.