Kidney Stones in Spanish

What it means

A kidney stone is a solid piece of material that forms in the kidney from substances in the urine. It may be as small as a grain of sand or as large as a pearl. Most kidney stones pass out of the body without help from a doctor, but sometimes a stone may get stuck in the urinary tract, block the flow of urine and cause great pain. The MedlinePlus encyclopedia says the main symptom is severe pain that starts and stops suddenly, which may be felt in the belly area or side of the back. A doctor diagnoses a kidney stone with urine, blood, and imaging tests. MedlinePlus gives nephrolithiasis as another name and lists renal calculi among the alternative names. In Spanish the term is cálculos renales.

Spanish term: Cálculos renales
Gender and article: masculine plural: los cálculos renales (singular: el cálculo renal)
Pronunciation: KAHL-koo-lohs rreh-NAH-lehs

Other Spanish terms	Where it is used	Note
piedras en los riñones	General	Heading of the MedlinePlus en español health topic, which gives cálculos renales as another name.
litiasis renal	General	Listed under Otros nombres in the MedlinePlus en español health topic.
nefrolitiasis	General	MedlinePlus en español lists it among the alternative names in its encyclopedia article.

Cálculos renales is the title of the MedlinePlus en español encyclopedia article, and the noun is masculine: los cálculos renales, un cálculo renal. The MedlinePlus en español health topic is headed Piedras en los riñones and gives cálculos renales and litiasis renal as other names; its first sentence puts the two words side by side, una piedra o un cálculo renal. Piedra is feminine: the topic says a stone puede ser tan pequeña como un grano de arena.

The encyclopedia article lists nefrolitiasis and litiasis urinaria among its alternative names. Words MedlinePlus en español uses around the term include riñón (kidney), uréter (ureter), orina (urine), vías urinarias (urinary tract) and sangre en la orina (blood in the urine). The pain may be felt en un costado de la espalda, in the side of the back, and may move to la ingle, the groin. For a stone leaving the body, the article speaks of its expulsión.

Phrases for an appointment

What a patient or a clinician might say, in English and Spanish:

Who	English	Spanish
Patient	I have a very strong pain in my side that comes and goes.	Tengo un dolor muy fuerte en el costado que va y viene.
Clinician	Does the pain move toward your groin?	¿El dolor se le va hacia la ingle?
Patient	Yes, and I saw blood in my urine this morning.	Sí, y esta mañana vi sangre en la orina.
Clinician	Have you ever had kidney stones before?	¿Ha tenido cálculos renales antes?
Patient	Yes, I passed a stone three years ago.	Sí, expulsé una piedra hace tres años.
Clinician	Do you have fever, chills, or vomiting?	¿Tiene fiebre, escalofríos o vómitos?
Clinician	I am going to order a urine test and a CT scan of your abdomen.	Voy a pedirle un análisis de orina y una tomografía computarizada del abdomen.
Clinician	Please strain your urine so we can save the stone and test it.	Por favor, cuele la orina para que podamos guardar el cálculo y analizarlo.

In 9 languages

Language	Term
English	Kidney Stones
Spanish (Español)	Cálculos renales
Chinese (中文)	腎結石
Korean (한국어)	신장 결석
Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt)	Sỏi thận
Filipino (Tagalog)	Kidney Stones
Portuguese (Português)	Cálculos renais
Thai (ภาษาไทย)	นิ่วในไต
Japanese (日本語)	腎臓結石

Where you'll see it

chartEOBmedical recordreferralprescription

Related ICD-10-CM category

ICD-10-CM code: N20 → Calculus of kidney and ureter

Related terms

Your right to an interpreter in the United States

If English is not your primary language and you have difficulty communicating in English, you may need an interpreter or a translated document when you visit a doctor or dentist, go to the emergency room or pick up a prescription. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights states that two federal laws, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, require programs that receive its funding to provide language access services free of charge.

You can ask when you make the appointment or at the front desk: "I need an interpreter, please." «Necesito un intérprete, por favor.»

More terms: Kidneys and urinary system

All terms in this area: Kidneys and urinary system — Riñones y vías urinarias

Sources

This page is a language reference. It is not medical advice.