In this episode, Jill discusses the difference between nephrologists and urologists and when to see each. She explains that urologists are surgeons who specialize in diseases of the bladder and kidneys, including kidney stone removal. Nephrologists, on the other hand, are medical doctors who manage kidney-related diseases and can also help with kidney stone prevention. Most kidney stone formers do not need both specialists, but may consider seeing a nephrologist if they have recurrent stones or other medical conditions. It is important to find a nephrologist who specializes in kidney stones to ensure the best care.
Takeaways
- Urologists are surgeons who specialize in diseases of the bladder and kidneys, including kidney stone removal.
- Nephrologists are medical doctors who manage kidney-related diseases and can also help with kidney stone prevention.
- Most kidney stone formers do not need both a urologist and a nephrologist.
- Consider seeing a nephrologist if you have recurrent stones or other medical conditions.
- Find a nephrologist who specializes in kidney stones for the best care.
Chapters
- 00:00 Introduction and Overview
- 00:52 When to Consider a Nephrologist
- 03:17 The Role of Urologists
- 06:08 Finding a Nephrologist Specializing in Kidney Stones
- 09:35 Conclusion and Resources
Jeff Sarris (00:00)
So as a kidney stone former, when do you have to see a nephrologist? Let’s talk about that.
Welcome back to the Kidney Stone Diet podcast, a show about reducing your kidney stone risk and living your best life. I’m your host and fellow student, Jeff Sarris
Jill Harris (00:20)
And I’m Jill Harris, your kidney stone prevention nurse. Hello, Jeff.
Jeff Sarris (00:24)
Hi. It’s always great to see you and we’re back at it again in our remote studio recording, but it’s always fun in person. And every time I say it, we need to do it more often, but travel is funky right now. So we’re going to figure it out and do it remote for today. But we are going for basically nephrologist versus urologist today.
Jill Harris (00:38)
I know, we do.
Jeff Sarris (00:52)
So when do people need to consider one or the other?
Jill Harris (00:56)
Well, it’s a great question and one that is brought up a lot on the Facebook group and the Facebook group is called Kidney Stone Diet with Jill Harris on Facebook. It’s a private group so you can look for that. So if you make kidney stones, all of you will need a urologist. The urologist is the surgeon that will take out your stone. It’s a doctor that specializes in diseases of the bladder, the kidneys, all of that. So if you have a kidney stone, say you have bladder cancer, prostate issues, the urologist is the surgeon that will take care of those things. The nephrologist is also a doctor, but he is not a surgeon. So the nephrologist takes care of specific diseases related to the kidney, like CKD, which stands for chronic kidney disease.
He will take care of things like metabolic disorders. He will take care of things, diabetes. He will take care of the medical issues that happen with the kidneys. And they can also be used in kidney stone prevention. So a lot of people will get one stone and they’re like, Jill, I got a urologist. Should I get a nephrologist too? Most stone formers do not need both. You do not need both.
Most stone formers do not need both. And why do I say that? Well, Jill, I just want both. Listen, as a patient myself, more doctor office visits, trying to get in, scheduling, you don’t need it in most cases. But when do you need a nephrologist? You should see a nephrologist when you have many stones and your urologist is not helping you. Now, people will say, my urologist just wants to make money, Jill.
That’s all he cares about, that’s all she cares about. She don’t tell me nothing and they just want to make money. That’s not true. I’m not saying it’s not true for all, but it’s not true for most. Urologists specialize in surgery. I’ve said this a million times, it’s like asking the hairdresser to paint your nails. That’s not what they do. The plumber’s not going to fix your lights, the electrician’s not going to fix your toilet.
Everybody in healthcare as well, they’re specialized in what they do. The nephrologist, who’s the medical doctor that manages kidney issues, is not going to do surgery on you. So, I mean, everybody does what they do. And many urologists are very upfront. They’re like, you know, I’m going to take them out, but as far as diet and stuff, they’ll say, go see Jill. I get a lot of doctor referrals. Or they’ll say, I’m going to send you to a nephrologist and then they can help
But a lot of urologists, when you guys are armed with the right information, I want a urine collection, I want to change my diet, they can help you. They can. So ask. If they’re like, I’m not sure I’m going to refer you to a nephrologist, fine. That’s fine. But I have saved many a patient from going then to see another doctor, i .e. a nephrologist, simply by doing a consult with me. We get the diet stuff going.
They do a follow-up urine collection with their urologist and everything’s okay. So most of you will not need it. So when do we need to look at a nephrologist? Well, if you have kidney stones, recurrent ones, and they’re just getting worse and worse, and the urologist is not able to help you, you need to see a nephrologist. If you have other medical conditions, like chronic kidney disease, like you’re a diabetic, those things may also promote kidney stones so you can get all those things managed with a nephrologist. can do that too. So nephrologists are for complex cases that the urologist cannot help you with. Then it is time to go to a nephrologist. Right, nephrologist.
Now, now listen, this is very important. Don’t be clicking off right now. I want you to sit here and listen to what I’m going to say. When you are looking for any doctor, I have learned my lesson here.
But when you are looking for a new doctor for whatever you have, but in this case, you want a nephrologist who is a doctor that specializes in kidney problems. You want to look at their bio and say, does this person also care about kidney stones or are they just doing dialysis? Because you’re gonna waste a lot of time waiting for that appointment, finally getting in there and the doctor’s like, I really don’t know much about kidney stones.
I can’t tell you how many patients have wasted their time with that. So do your due diligence and always remember that each of these doctors specialize in certain things. Like Dr. Coe is not doing dialysis, he knows about it for sure. And he’s not doing CKD, he knows about it for sure. But his specialty is kidney stones. So there are plenty of nephrologists that really dig kidney stones and they know exactly how to help
Look in their bio when you’re online, type in nephrologist that cares about kidney stones, look in their bio and see what they specialize in, what their areas of concern are for you. If it’s not listed because it’s a tiny little practice maybe, when you call to make an appointment, you ask the person who picks up the phone or ask to speak to the nurse. You’re better off probably asking the front desk, hey, I want a doctor that specializes in kidney stones.
Okay, so that’s super important not to waste your time and your copay money. Again, I’m a patient, I know about this. So you really want to pay attention to that. So to wrap this up, it’s really quite easy. Well, when you know what it all is. A urologist, if you’re making stones, everyone should have a very good surgeon. That is your urologist. If your urologist, your surgeon, is not able to help your complex kidney stone case, please ask for a referral from that urologist, say, hey doc, I’m gonna need help here. Can you refer me out to a nephrologist? Or if you feel a little, know, he’s trying to help you, you’re the urologist, but you’re like, I feel a little shy about saying I gotta go somewhere else, because you’re not doing it for me. Then ask friends, ask, as everybody knows, a kidney stone former. Look on the internet, somebody close to you, a nephrologist near you that specializes kidney stones.
And so that’s how you begin this. But most of you will not need both. Most of you won’t. Most of my patients, the thousands and thousands and thousands that I’ve had over the years, do not have both. Some do, most don’t. I hope that helps figure it out because it is complicated. It is. And also we always have to think about it. I know when I’m sick, I ain’t thinking straight. And I know a lot of stuff about healthcare.
a nurse so you would think Jill she’s got it but when you’re anxious and you’re sick all rationale goes out the window it’s just really scary so pay attention to this video do what I’m saying and you’ll get the right help at the right time I hope it I hope this helps did it make sense Jeff to a lay person
Jeff Sarris (08:20)
Yeah, that’s, yeah, for sure. And it’s so important because getting the best doctor’s visit possible is what we want. We don’t want to be bouncing doctor to doctor to doctor because we’re at the wrong spot. So I think that’s so helpful. And also that’s why you also have the resource on the site to have a better doctor’s visit where you can just download this PDF and it’ll explain everything you need to know to make sure you have the best appointment possible before you even get
Jill Harris (08:44)
Yes, that article is called 13 Critical Questions to Ask at Your First Doctor’s Appointment or something like that, folks. Go to kidneystonediet.com and put that in the search bar and you’ll find it. But yeah, it’s really important. We have so little time with doctors. We really wanna navigate those appointments well. And that’s why we have the urine analysis consult. I can’t tell you, that’s a very valuable service and well worth the price. When you’re prepped for your doctor, doctor office visit you’re going to get a better treatment plan you’re going to get better time with the doctor you’re going to get more attention when you seem ready and eager you get more help folks typically okay so that’s really important to check out the urinalysis consult it’s well worth its price I will tell you that it’s a very valuable service
Jeff Sarris (09:35)
Absolutely. So you can find that and everything else at kidneystonediet.com. I think we’ll wrap there for this week. YouTube thinks you would like this video, this video, one of these sides of the screen here, and we will see you next
Jill Harris (09:48)
Bye everybody, thank you.
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