The U.S. Stone Belt

Studies have shown that there is a higher prevalence for kidney stones in hotter and wetter climates, and in the U.S., that means the South, also known as the « Stone Belt ». Also contributing to the frequency of kidney stones in the South is the Southern diet: rich in fried foods, mayonnaise, dressings, salty meats, and even iced tea.

To quote “The Tennessean:”

“‘Needles to the groin’ or ‘knife in the back’ are two of the ways people recount the pain of passing a kidney stone. It seems most people in the South know someone who can personally describe a jagged crystalline stone moving through a sensitive part of the anatomy.”

“Population studies show that Southerners are up to 50 percent more likely to develop stones,” says Nicole Miller, M.D., a surgeon specializing in stone disease and endourology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center Urology Clinic.

About one in ten people will get a kidney stone at some point in their lifetime, and more than 500,000 people in the U.S. make a trip to the emergency room for the excruciating pain resulting from a kidney stone. Diet, not drinking enough water, hereditary factors, and lack of exercise can all contribute to getting a stone, and sometimes, the reason is unknown.

Changing one’s diet and getting more exercise can reduce the risk of kidney stones, but if you have one, you’re not alone…and you’re not to blame. It can happen. So, what are your treatment options?

Visit the Dornier MedTech Patient Center to learn more!

References:

http://blog.bcbsnc.com/2017/06/kidney-stones-north-carolina/

http://cjasn.asnjournals.org/content/11/3/488.abstract

https://www.tennessean.com/story/life/2016/05/08/more-southerners-risk-kidney-stones/83338742/

https://www.urologyhealth.org/educational-materials/kidney-stones-a-patient-guide

About Dornier MedTech – Dornier MedTech, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Accuron Medical Technology group (www.accuron.com), is a medical device company focused on providing leading technology and improving life by delivering scientifically superior products and solutions to physicians and patients involved in urological care.  As pioneers of the lithotripsy and a variety of surgical lasers, Dornier’s 40 years of innovation and service has made it one of the most trusted MedTech companies in the industry.  Dornier MedTech is headquartered in Munich, Germany with offices and distributors all over the world.  For more information, visit www.dornier.com.

About the Accuron Medical Technology Group – The Accuron Medical Technology Group is a privately owned by Temasek Holdings, through the business of Dornier MedTech GmbH, Veredus Laboratories and Advanced Materials Technologies Pte Ltd, provide therapeutic, diagnostic, and medical device manufacturing solutions to customers around the globe.  Veredus Laboratories Pte Ltd, specializes in the development, manufacture, and marketing of innovative molecular diagnostic solutions in the clinical, specialty, and custom testing markets based on a proprietary Lab-on-Chip platform.  Advanced Materials Technologies Pte Ltd serves the contract manufacturing needs of the medical technology sector through providing materials expertise and high precision engineering capabilities.