Have you just been told that you will need a ureteric stent because your kidneys are blocked?
Are you wondering for precise, assuring information on how the procedure is done and what to expect after the procedure.
Answers from an interventional radiographer who is among the team which does ureteric stent procedure. And relied on research studies on the subject.
Happy reading.😀 and feel free to ask questions in the comments or share your own experience.🙏
Last updated: November, 2025. Written by Juliet Semakula, a diagnostic radiographer.
▶️ Some bit of the anatomy of the urinary system.
Before we learn what a ureteric stent is, let’s understand how the urinary system works.
Normally there are two kidneys situated in the upper part of the abdomen, towards the back that help to produce urine.
The urine formed in the kidney is carried to the bladder by a fine muscular tube called a ureter.
The urinary bladder acts as a reservoir for the urine and when it is full it is emptied via the urethra (water pipe).
Image of a urinary system in the human body
▶️ What really causes blockage to the ureter?
🟠A kidney stone (or stone fragment), this can move into your ureter either by itself or after extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy treatment.
🟠A stricture (narrowing) of the ureter, this can occur anywhere in the ureter due to scarring, congenital narrowing, and tumour growth within or outside the ureter causing narrowing and obstruction.
🟠After surgery or instrumentation (temporarily)
When an instrument has been put into the ureter and kidney this is often temporary to protect the ureter from a blockage caused by swelling that occurs in the first few days after surgery.
🟠Occasionally, obstruction can occur because of diseases of the prostate or pelvic tumours.
Your urologist will provide further details applicable to you in case you need a stent or another alternative such as a nephrostomy.
| Whenever there is an obstruction, pressure builds up behind the kidney. Due to high pressure, the function of the kidneys starts to suffer over a period of weeks. The obstruction can also cause stagnation of the urine, which can lead to infection and further damage to the kidneys. It is, therefore, important to relieve or prevent obstruction of the kidneys, that’s when a ureteric stent procedure is inevitable. |
It is not always possible to identify what has caused an obstruction and to treat this immediately. It is therefore essential to relieve the obstruction on a temporary basis before investigation or treatment is carried out.
▶️What is ureteric stenting?
A ureteric stent is a particularly designed hollow tube, made of a flexible plastic material that is placed in the ureter.
The main reason is to connect the stent from the kidney to the bladder as seen in the image below.
Diagram and fluoroscopy images of Nephroureteral /JJ stent tube. Retrieved from (Ghasemi-Rad,2025)
There is a different length of the stents we normally use in interventional for example in adult patients it varies between 24 to 30 cm although there are different types of stents.
▶️Why would your doctor recommend a ureteric stent in your case?
What you must know uretic stents are recommended for many reasons. But the main reasons we do stents in interventional radiology for patients are:
🔴Blockage of the ureter, that’s (the tube draining urine from the kidney to the bladder) can sometimes block preventing urine from flowing freely to the bladder.
🔴As an introduction to lithotripsy (shockwave treatment) for a kidney stone.
🔴Stents can be inserted at the end of planned surgery involving your ureter or as an emergency to bypass an unexpected blockage.
▶️Is a stent a major surgery?
This is a question I normally hear patients worry about when they are told they are going to have a stent inserted.it is normal to understand how the procedure is done.
This helps you to clear the unknown and all the worries and thoughts you might have. In this article I will try to explain to you clearly how the procedure is done based on the fact that I am among the team who does these procedures.
▶️What should you expect:
First let me put your fears at rest, a stent is NOT considered as a major surgery, it is a minimally invasive procedure that does not require larger or open incisions.
Most of the time most patients do not require general anaesthesia for a stent procedure though sometimes they do use it.
The procedure takes approximately 30 minutes to perform unless otherwise.
Most patients we see normally have a much shorter recovery time than for major surgery.
Many patients usually go home the same day or the day after the procedure and can resume normal activities within a week (for a planned procedure).
You can see a stent as an alternative to a major open-heart surgery for treating blocked arteries, it has low risk complications and quicker recovery.
▶️How is the ureteric stent procedure performed
You may have one stent inserted to the right kidney or both kidneys depending on which is blocked.
There two different approaches I have seen being done to insert a stent:
1️⃣Retrograde approach (most common)
♦️Preparation: A general or spinal anaesthetic is administered.
♦️Cystoscopy: A thin, lighted tube called a cystoscope is passed through the urethra into the bladder.
♦️Guidewire placement: A thin guidewire is threaded through the cystoscope and up the ureter to the kidney under X-ray guidance.
♦️Stent placement: The stent is slid into place over the guidewire.
♦️Confirmation: An X-ray is taken to ensure the stent is positioned correctly.
♦️Removal: The cystoscope and guidewire are removed.
2️⃣Antegrade approach
♦️Preparation: The area below the ribs is numbed with a local anaesthetic, and a sedative may be given.
♦️Insertion: A fine needle and guidewire are used to pass the stent directly into the kidney through the skin on the back.
♦️Stent placement: The stent is guided down into the ureter.
♦️Confirmation: X-ray guidance is used throughout the process.
X-ray image showing a bilateral ureteric stent inserted in both kidneys.
▶️What are the side effects of a ureter stent?
Early complications of ureteric (JJ Stent) placement include:
⚫Irritative bladder symptoms.
⚫ Haematuria
⚫ Stent discomfort.
Meanwhile the late complications are
⚫ Stent migration.
⚫ Encrustation.
⚫ Fragmentation
A study that followed up over 146 patients who had undergone a stent insertion cystoscopy, with local anaesthesia: Damiano,2002
♦️Over 103/146 patients (70.5%), mild sedation.
♦️In 9/146 patients (6.2%) and general or locoregional anaesthesia.
♦️In 34/146 patients (23.3%), always under fluoroscopic guidance.
In all cases, a polyether-urethane double pigtail ureteral stent was used, with closed tip for simultaneous application of ureteral stent and guidewire.
The size ranged from 4.8 to 7 Fr, and the length was 28 cm; the stent was intended to remain in place for a period of up to 3 months.
With the ureteral stent in place, patients were undergoing clinical evaluation, and plain abdominal X-ray on the day following the procedure and again 30 days later.
All patients were scheduled for removal or exchange of the stent at specific 3-month intervals until they reached a stone-free condition.
Patients with complications underwent clinical evaluation, ultrasound and plain abdominal X-ray to evaluate stent position and hydronephrosis.
♦️Results from the study:
Early complications appeared during the first 4 weeks after stent insertion, and included:
🔴Discomfort.
🔴Irritative bladder symptoms.
🔴Haematuria.
🔴Bacteriuria with or without clinical urinary tract infection.
🔴Fever.
🔴Flank pain for reflux. Patients who complained of flank pain were advised to urinate in a sitting position, avoiding any increase in abdominal pressure that may cause reflux. In cases of high fever (104°F).
🔴Flank pain a urethral catheter was inserted for a week to drain urine and avoid reflux.
Late complications resulted in:
🔴Hydronephrosis.
🔴 Upward and downward stent migration.
🔴 Encrustation (ranging from simple to obstructive).
🔴 Fragmentation and breakage.
Source: Damiano,2002
Another study by Geavlete et al 2021 which followed up people who had undergone a ureteral stent.
An evaluation of over 50,000 procedures performed between 1996 and 2021 on 36,688 patients.
According to the stenting duration, the cases were divided into short-term (less than 6 weeks – 34,213 procedures), respectively long-term stenting (more than 6 weeks – 15,757 procedures).
However, despite the progress in materials and design, some problems regarding their use still develop. Since the stent is a foreign body.
The table below shows possible ureteral stent complications that were retrieved from the study:
Geavlete,2021
Double J stents are a valuable tool to prevent and alleviate blockage.
Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a “perfect urinary stent”, and these are not without risks.
However, this should not scare you from having one, always complications of the Double J stent are assessed and addressed as soon as they occur.
▶️Does having a ureteral stent make you tired?
Yes, a ureteral stent can cause tiredness due to side effects, and the tiredness can also be a lingering effect from the surgery and anaesthesia, especially in the first few days.
Here are some of the reasons why you may feel tied after a stent insertion:
⚪Stent-related side effects, such as bladder pain, discomfort in the kidney area, and the need to urinate more often, can be tiring in themselves.
⚪Sleep disruption: Symptoms like frequent, urgent urination can make it difficult to sleep through the night, leading to daytime fatigue.
⚪Post-procedure effects: After the initial stent placement procedure, it is normal to feel more tired than usual due to the anaesthesia and the stress on the body.
⚪Physical strain: The discomfort can be more pronounced with physical activity, making strenuous work or exercise more tiring than usual.
Some patients we see after the procedure do complain of the following urinary side effects.
⚪An increased frequency of passing urine
⚪The need to rush to pass urine (urgency).
⚪A small amount of blood in the urine. This is quite common, and the situation can improve with a greater fluid intake.
⚪The stents can also result in a sensation of incomplete emptying of the bladder.
You should try and pass urine every 2-3 hours, if possible. Very occasionally, especially in women, there is a slight risk of episodes of incontinence. Especially if the thread is left in place.
▶️What to do when you experience such side effects.
⚪Listen to your body:
Patients we see are normally instructed to listen to their body, if you feel tired, rest. You may need to avoid intense activities, especially in the first few days or when you first get the stent.
If you have got a stent with a thread coming down from the urethra outside the body, then more care will be needed so as not to dislodge the thread.
⚪Manage symptoms:
Drink plenty to water to reduce the blood in your urine and to reduce the risk of infection
Always talk to your doctor about managing discomfort, as it can contribute to fatigue.
⚪Consider work adjustments:
If your job is physically demanding, discuss the need for temporary adjustments with your manager.
▶️How long does a ureteric stent stay in place?
The length of time a stent can remain in place is variable due to the cause of obstruction and the nature of treatment.
In most patients I see in interventional radiology, a stent is required for a short duration, at times days but usually weeks or up to 6 months without the need to replace.
In some incidences a stent only needs to stay in place for a short period 1-7 days and often the stent is attached to a string which hangs outside the urethra and is taped to your body.
In some circumstances a stent is required on a long-term basis, and your doctor will decide when it can be taken out.
Normally if the cause of the insertion is a blockage of a kidney stone. And after an assessment the stone is removed, and urine is flowing well through the ureter then a stent will be removed.
Always report to your GP or doctor if you feel the stent has stayed too long with no contact from the hospital
▶️How painful is ureteral stent? And how is it removed?
The insertion of a ureteral stent is usually not painful because it is performed under general anaesthesia or a local anaesthetic that numbs the area, making you unaware of the procedure.
You may feel some discomfort during the local anaesthetic injection, but other pain is prevented by the anaesthesia and any necessary intravenous painkillers.
Some patients I see after a stent insertion complain of slight discomfort or pain, commonly in the bladder and kidney (loin) area, but sometimes in other areas such as the groin, urethra and genitals.
The discomfort or pain may be more noticeable after physical activities and after passing urine.
You may have a small amount of blood in your urine for 1 to 3 days after the procedure.
There is some evidence that some of the symptoms, such as pain while passing urine and blood in the urine, may improve with time.
These symptoms will, in most patients, settle within 24 to 48 hours. Some people with ureteric stents get pain in one (or both) kidney(s) when they pass urine. This is quite common and is not a cause for concern.
However, this remains unpredictable. It has been reported that around 20-70% of patients with stents experience one or more of these side effects.
▶️How is it taken out:
This is a short procedure and consists of removal of the stent using a flexible cystoscope, usually under local anaesthesia.
A nurse or a doctor will gently pull the string which is attached to the stent, and it should slip out easily and this takes a few seconds.
It can sometimes be uncomfortable but, you do not routinely need to take any medication or painkiller beforehand.
Other common questions I normally hear patients ask after the procedure:
▶️Can I have sex after the procedure
There are no restrictions on your sex life due to the presence of a stent. Few patients experience discomfort during sexual activities. Occasionally the side effects associated with the stent may influence the sexual desire.
Here is an article you may also like about. Having sex after a surgery procedure.
▶️ Will having a stent hinder my physical activities such as work and sports.
You can carry on with various physical activities while the stent is in place provided the underlying kidney condition and your health allows you to do it.
Sometimes side effects associated with a stent can make you feel more tired than normal, distracting your activities such as sports.
The presence of a stent should not affect your social life and interactions. Occasionally you may need a little more help from family members or colleagues, because of any pain or tiredness you may feel.
▶️It is possible to travel with a stent in place, provided the underlying kidney condition and your general health allow this.
However, the presence of significant side effects associated with the stent may make travel and holidays less enjoyable.
▶️How can I sleep with a ureteric stent?
Patients are advised to try different sleeping positions to find what is most comfortable for them.
For example, sleeping on the side opposite the stent to reduce pressure.
Avoid large amounts of fluids right before bed and take prescribed or over-the-counter pain medication as advised by your doctor to help with any night pain.
We have come to the end of this article, hope I have answered some of the commonly asked questions, wishing you a quick recovery!🙋
Any questions let’s meet in the comments section.
📚Sources:
Ghasemi-Rad M, Trinh K, Wynne D, et al. Nephrostomy (PCN) versus nephroureteral stent (Double JJ); An ongoing battle. Urologia Journal. 2025;92(3):424-431. doi:10.1177/03915603251316702
Damiano R, Oliva A, Esposito C, De Sio M, Autorino R, D’Armiento M. Early and late complications of double pigtail ureteral stent. Urol Int. 2002;69(2):136-40. doi: 10.1159/000065563. PMID: 12187045.
Geavlete P, Georgescu D, Mulțescu R, Stanescu F, Cozma C, Geavlete B. Ureteral stent complications – experience on 50,000 procedures. J Med Life. 2021 Nov-Dec;14(6):769-775. doi: 10.25122/jml-2021-0352. PMID: 35126746; PMCID: PMC8811679.