KIDNEY STONES FORMATION AND USE OF MEDICINAL PLANTS AS ANTIUROLITHIATIC AGENTS

There is an old and famous fact “the garden is the poor man’s apothecary” and treatment of each and every disease is hidden in nature. Medicinal plants are highly esteemed all over the world as a rich source of therapeutic agents for the prevention and treatment of various diseases. Since ages, herbs are being used for treating different ailments in different parts of world by different communities. A kidney stone, also known as a renal calculus is a solid concretion or crystal aggregation formed in the kidneys from dietary minerals in the urine. The problem of urinary stones or calculi is a very ancient one these stones are found in all parts of the urinary tract, the kidney, and the urinary bladder and may vary considerably in size. Urolithiasis is a complex process that occurs from series of several physicochemical event including super-saturation, nucleation, growth, aggregation and retention within the kidneys. Present article deals with reason, types of kidney stones, risk factors associated, diagnosis and treatment methods including many medicinal plants as herbal option for treatment of urinary stones. Google Scholar