Man Sets World Records with 5-Inch Kidney Stone

Kidney stones are deposits of salts/minerals that build up inside the kidney. Certain types of medication can result in the formation of kidney stones. Other factors, such as excess body weight, and insufficient intake of fluids, can also lead to kidney stone formation. These stones are usually the size of small pebbles. People with kidney stones generally pass blood along with urine or find urinating a painful process. Some people may experience sharp pain in the back or lower abdomen. In this blog, you will find information on the man with the record-breaking kidney stone.

Kidney stones can be highly painful. Nearly one in ten individuals get stones in their kidneys during their lifetime. If not treated properly, kidney stones can lead to infections, or the organ itself might not function normally.

The 5-Inch Kidney Stone

According to Guinness World Records, a Sri Lankan man has been found to have the largest kidney stone. It’s also the heaviest! So, he holds two records. Doctors removed this kidney stone from a retired soldier named Canistus Coonghe, who is 62 years old. The onion-shaped stone weighed around 1.76 pounds, which is as heavy as 5 baseballs. Guinness World Records also confirmed that Canistus Coonghe’s kidney stone was 5.26 inches long. 

Coonghe has spoken about his record-breaking kidney stone in an interview with one of Sri Lanka’s local news channels. He has stated that he used to have abdominal pain frequently since 2020. And, oral medication proved fruitless. But now, he feels normal after the surgery.

Removal of the Giant Kidney Stone

On the 1st of June, 2023, a urological team at the Army Hospital in Colombo, Sri Lanka, performed a surgical procedure on Coonghe. They removed the stone from his right kidney by using the procedure known as, “pyelolithotomy.” In this surgical procedure, doctors make an incision in the renal pelvis of the patient’s kidney and then remove the stones from it.

Dr. Kugadas Sutharshan, an army surgeon at the hospital, stated that Coonghe’s prostate was enlarged at the time of the procedure. However, his other organs, such as the gallbladder, liver, spleen, and pancreas, were of normal size. The surgeon also added that Coonghe’s kidneys were functioning as usual after the stone was removed. 

The colossal kidney stone removed from Coonghe was almost the size of an 8-week-old kitten, and was larger than his kidney itself!

After the surgery, Coonghe is recovering pretty well. Once the kidney stone was removed, it was shown to Lieutenant General Vikum Liyanage, the Commander of the Army.

Previous Record Holders

In 2008, doctors removed a large kidney stone weighing 1.36 pounds from Wazir Muhammad in Pakistan. It was the heaviest until Coonghe beat the record for the heaviest kidney stone.

In 2004, a kidney stone of length 5.11 inches was removed from an Indian man named, Vilas Ghuge. It was the longest until Coonghe beat the record.

The youngest person to have his kidney stone removed is Joshua Price from the U.S. He was merely 6 years and 298 days old when doctors in Texas removed a stone from his left kidney.

You have now learned about the kidney stone world record holder. However, people might not be too interested in setting these types of records!