“The most common stones are stones that result primarily around poor dehydration… people often times don’t do a great job of keeping themselves hydrated through the year. As a result they are more prone to develop kidney stones.
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– Dr. Mike Ziegler, emergency pediatrics, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta

Kids who don’t drink enough water can develop all kinds of problems – headaches, nausea, and heat exhaustion.

They can even develop a very painful ailment that’s rare in children – kidney stones.

That seems to be the case for 16-year-old Katherine Stucke. For four days now, she’s been in pain, and it’s getting worse.

“If you had to pick a number between zero and ten, [with] ten’s the worse pain you can think of, [and] zero’s no pain, what number would you give this?” asks Dr. Mike Ziegler of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

“Seven,” Katherine says.

The doctor prescribes a pain medicine called Toradol. Next come x-rays – and a urine test to check for infection and blood.

“This is consistent with a kidney stone that has passed down and gone down into her pelvis,” says Dr. Ziegler, pointing to the x-ray. “If it’s caught there, that could explain the reoccurrence of her symptoms and increased pain today.”

There is no evidence of infection, and Katherine’s pain is now under control.

But the doctors are now at a crossroads – wait for the stone to pass, or intervene?

“The urologist talked with you, and the plan is that they’re going to put a little stint in there, to allow that stone to pass on down,” Dr. Ziegler explains to Katherine. “But between now and tomorrow, they want you to continue to use the strainer – in case you pass it on through.”

“One reason it’s important to try to catch the stone, if at all possible,” he says, “is so they can do a stone analysis – to see what type of stone it is. Because depending on what type of the stone it is, it may give you some insight as to what lead to the stone formation.”

But based on her lifestyle the doctors already have a clue. Katherine is an athlete; she’s active and busy.

“If you get dehydrated, and the water is not keeping the concentration of the minerals and salts optimal,” Dr. Ziegler says, then you may develop stones.”

For now Katherine is sent home with some crucial advice: “Drink lots of liquids, okay?”

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• IF your child gets a kidney stone that they will be dealing with a lot of pain. It’s important to try to minimize and control it.(Dr. Mike Ziegler, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta




• Symptoms of a kidney stone include pain in the back or side, bloody or cloudy urine, foul-smelling urine, nausea and vomiting or the persistent urge to urinate. (Mayo Clinic)




• Roughly four out of five stones are calcium stones, caused by a high concentration of calcium and oxalate in the blood. (Mayo Clinic)




• One of the easiest ways to prevent kidney stones is by drinking lots of liquids. If you have a history of stones, doctors recommend drinking 14 cups of water everyday. (Mayo Clinic)

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• National Kidney Foundation




• National Institute of Health

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