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Jul. 18th, 2014 12:07 amToday I went to a second urologist about my kidney stone. As I said, I liked the first one, but she's in Rockwall, a 45-minute drive away. Plus I had major problems with her clinic. I was only able to deal with one person, a scheduler, and all she wanted to do was schedule the surgery. Other than what the doctor told me, I was told nothing about the surgery. I had to ask to find out it was day surgery, and ask again to find out that I wouldn't be able to drive myself home. Although I told her about how much trouble I would have finding transportation, she never mentioned to me until later, when she dropped it into casual conversation, that the sound wave surgery couldn't be done there, but only in Dallas. WTF??? No way I am going to Dallas ever again if I can help it, and the person I found to take me to Rockwall won't drive in Dallas, either. Furthermore, at no point did anyone bother to discuss with me how I'd be paying for this or how much my insurance would cover. So I finally got angry, really angry, and asked my PCP for another referral.
Now, get this. The new guy I saw today told me that, according to the CAT scan I had done at the end of May, I no longer had the stone. It had passed. (I read the report on the scan, and he was right.) He also told me that with a stone that small (4mm), they don't recommend surgery, unless there are many stones, infection, or severe pain, or the stone was stuck and wouldn't move. He said that I don't need to restrict my diet, as I've only had the single stone, so that was not really an issue. (I can drink tea again! Woohooo!!) He said it was most likely caused by uric acid from the gout, and that I'm taking the correct medicine for that.
These two doctors are so opposite, how the heck can I tell who's right?? I went with my gut. I already suspected that I had passed the stone, as the most annoying symptoms had stopped about a month ago. Also, I tend to do almost anything I can to avoid surgery. Plus this new guy is in Greenville, only a 20-minute drive. To me, there's no contest. I'm going with the new guy. But it just goes to show you that (a) getting a second opinion on surgery is always a good idea, (b) some doctors can't be trusted, and (c) I'm not as good at reading people as I thought I was.
The only downside to this is that I have to stop feeling sorry for myself now. LOL!
Now, get this. The new guy I saw today told me that, according to the CAT scan I had done at the end of May, I no longer had the stone. It had passed. (I read the report on the scan, and he was right.) He also told me that with a stone that small (4mm), they don't recommend surgery, unless there are many stones, infection, or severe pain, or the stone was stuck and wouldn't move. He said that I don't need to restrict my diet, as I've only had the single stone, so that was not really an issue. (I can drink tea again! Woohooo!!) He said it was most likely caused by uric acid from the gout, and that I'm taking the correct medicine for that.
These two doctors are so opposite, how the heck can I tell who's right?? I went with my gut. I already suspected that I had passed the stone, as the most annoying symptoms had stopped about a month ago. Also, I tend to do almost anything I can to avoid surgery. Plus this new guy is in Greenville, only a 20-minute drive. To me, there's no contest. I'm going with the new guy. But it just goes to show you that (a) getting a second opinion on surgery is always a good idea, (b) some doctors can't be trusted, and (c) I'm not as good at reading people as I thought I was.
The only downside to this is that I have to stop feeling sorry for myself now. LOL!