Step through Nephrostomy on the model

When urine cannot drain out of a kidney, a nephrostomy gives it another way out: a thin, soft tube through the skin of your back into the kidney. It is usually done while you are awake, with numbing medicine and medicine to help you relax, and it eases the pressure right away.

The short version

Something is blocking the tube that carries urine from your kidney to your bladder, so urine is backing up and the kidney is swelling.
A nephrostomy is a thin, soft tube that goes through the skin of your back into the kidney, so the urine can drain into a bag outside your body.
You lie face down and usually stay awake, with numbing medicine and medicine to help you relax. The doctor uses ultrasound and X-ray to guide a needle, a wire and then the tube.
The tube eases the pressure right away and stays in until the blockage is fixed, and the team will teach you how to care for it at home.

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