the.com/kidney stone
A small, hard mineral deposit in the kidney that can cause intense pain when it passes.
means A hard mass of crystallized minerals and salts that forms inside the kidney and can cause severe pain as it passes through the urinary tract.
from Straightforward compound English: 'kidney,' from Middle English 'kidenei' (origin itself murky, possibly related to Old Norse or a blend of 'cwið' meaning womb/belly and 'ey' meaning egg, describing the organ's shape), plus 'stone,' from Old English 'stan,' used for centuries to describe any hard mineral mass — gallstones and kidney stones alike earned the name simply because they are, medically and unglamorously, small stones that grow where they absolutely should not.
- actual size
- often smaller than a grain of rice
- pain cause
- stretches and scrapes the ureter walls
- risk factor
- not drinking enough water, mostly
- nickname
- Doctors sometimes compare the pain to childbirth