Urgent medical situation 1 week prior to sailing

[the_dylaness]

Hi all,

I'm in need of quick advice- no time now to search contracts and clauses as I'm in the emergency department with my husband, waiting to see if he'll be admitted or discharged.

 

He has his first and hopefully last kidney stone.  They're awaiting some final tests to see about staying vs going home. Due to the larger size of the stone and its unfavorable location they have advised that the likelihood of spontaneous passage is around 30%, if he is able to go home tonight.  

 

We're hoping for discharge and quick urologic follow up... which seems somewhat unlikely to happen on the Friday before Memorial Day weekend.  We leave Wednesday at 11am to fly to Rome.

 

We have two staterooms booked- one for us, and one for our two children and another adult.  She was diagnosed with COVID several days ago (not a great week around here) and we are anticipating she will be fully recovered and able to obtain a Certificate of Recovery.    

 

We are actually still hoping to go on the cruise, if circumstances allow.  But, at this point we are facing the reality that it may not be possible.  Would our situation qualify for "Cruise with Confidence" or whatever the program is? Our flights are purchased through Celebrity- would that be affected or would we just have to file with travel insurance and hope for the best?

 

In nearly 2 dozen cruises we've never had anything like these events happen and in addition to dealing with the immediate medical situation at hand, are really unsure of how to proceed.

 

Thanks for any advice from those who might be thinking a little more clearly than I at the moment.

[LB_NJ]

I unfortunately have had kidney stones.  Probability of traveling next week near 10% based on what you said.

 

You could use Cruise with Confidence to get an FCC if it applies to your situation.

 

Otherwise you need to have a doctor check out your husband and be willing to sign a document that says he is unfit to travel if you want to get money from the Travel Insurance Company.  I assume EVERYONE in the party has travel insurance.

[carolyn22]

Ugh, as a frequent kidney stone sufferer, he has my complete sympathy. Did they say how many millimeters the stone is and where exactly it’s located?  
 

I live in a smallish town, and the only urology office in town only does lithotripsy once a week, unless it is an emergency where there is danger of kidney damage because of the size of the stone. Hopefully you live in an area where his stone can be treated more quickly. 
 

If they are able to bust up the stone, ask specifically which method they are going to use. If the can do the shock wave lithotripsy soon, I’d say your chances of being able to go are good. Be advised that he is still going to have to pass those broken stone pieces and that can still be painful, but certainly do-able.
 

I got a big stone one time while on vacation in Florida, and the surgeon I went to used laser lithotripsy and also put a stent in. I have say it was NOT a pleasant experience afterwards and there is no way I could have gone on a cruise until at least two weeks after that procedure. I have begged my local urologist to never use that procedure on me in the future. 
 

Do you have trip insurance?  If so, I think you would be covered given that this is his first stone and obviously not a pre-existing condition.

 

I am hoping for the best outcome for your husband and your trip!  I wish I could help you with some of your cruise-related questions, but unfortunately my only advice relates to kidney stones. There are a lot of helpful people on here that hopefully can advise your on your cruise and air questions. 

[Charles4515]

Don't you have travel insurance? 

[the_dylaness]

8 hours ago, LB_NJ said:

I unfortunately have had kidney stones.  Probability of traveling next week near 10% based on what you said.

 

You could use Cruise with Confidence to get an FCC if it applies to your situation.

 

Otherwise you need to have a doctor check out your husband and be willing to sign a document that says he is unfit to travel if you want to get money from the Travel Insurance Company.  I assume EVERYONE in the party has travel insurance.

 

Thank you for your honest reply... we are trying to get him in with the urologist today.  Friday of Memorial Day Weekend is not a good time to have this happen!  Yes, we all have trip insurance but for reasons I don't totally understand, the 5 of us are on 3 separate policies and they don't match our room assignments... myself and my son on one, my husband and daughter on a second, and the other adult on a 3rd, although all with same company.  I believe the first two are due to the fact we rolled over the travel insurance from our October 2020 TA which we did not go on, and on that cruise that is how the rooms were booked. Not sure if this will present an issue.

[the_dylaness]

8 hours ago, carolyn22 said:

Ugh, as a frequent kidney stone sufferer, he has my complete sympathy. Did they say how many millimeters the stone is and where exactly it’s located?  
 

I live in a smallish town, and the only urology office in town only does lithotripsy once a week, unless it is an emergency where there is danger of kidney damage because of the size of the stone. Hopefully you live in an area where his stone can be treated more quickly. 
 

If they are able to bust up the stone, ask specifically which method they are going to use. If the can do the shock wave lithotripsy soon, I’d say your chances of being able to go are good. Be advised that he is still going to have to pass those broken stone pieces and that can still be painful, but certainly do-able.
 

I got a big stone one time while on vacation in Florida, and the surgeon I went to used laser lithotripsy and also put a stent in. I have say it was NOT a pleasant experience afterwards and there is no way I could have gone on a cruise until at least two weeks after that procedure. I have begged my local urologist to never use that procedure on me in the future. 
 

Do you have trip insurance?  If so, I think you would be covered given that this is his first stone and obviously not a pre-existing condition.

 

I am hoping for the best outcome for your husband and your trip!  I wish I could help you with some of your cruise-related questions, but unfortunately my only advice relates to kidney stones. There are a lot of helpful people on here that hopefully can advise your on your cruise and air questions. 

 

Thanks! Yes we live in a relatively decent sized city so hopefully SWL available more than once a week.  Hoping to get into urologist today. This is very helpful insights and I'm sorry to hear about your history of stones, sounds awful!

 

We do have trip insurance, I put a bit about the details in the post above, it's a little wonky.  I am going to call them today.

[the_dylaness]

8 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

Don't you have travel insurance? 

 

We do, although I am not sure it will cover all the costs... it was a policy we carried over from an October 2020 TA (our first time ever buying trip insurance was that, actually).

[the_dylaness]

@carolyn226mm, proximal ureter, both not good signs 😞

[wrk2cruise]

When was the positive covid test?  If it was within 14 days of the sailing date I would check with Celebrity as all in "your traveling party" would be eligible for a refund or FCC and I believe this covers Celebrity air as well.

 

It does look like the definition of "traveling party" could be an issue as I assume the other adult doesn't live with you.

 

For purposes of this Policy, your “Traveling Party” means your family members living with you in the same
household and traveling companions assigned to your stateroom on the cruise.

 

https://www.celebritycruises.com/content/dam/celebrity/pdf/cel-covid-19-cancellations-and-refunds-policy.pdf

 

I don't believe that CwC will cover you Celebrity air, however if they are refundable airline tickets you would be out only the $200 pp Celebrity Air fees.  I'm not sure if travel insurance would cover that given CwC is a voluntary program.

[carolyn22]

1 hour ago, the_dylaness said:

@carolyn226mm, proximal ureter, both not good signs 😞

That’s a decent sized stone.  If proximal is up closer to the kidney (which I think it is), then the stone still has a distance to travel. The quicker they can get it out, the better for him. Make sure he drinks LOTS of water. 
 

Good luck with everything!

[Charles4515]

1 hour ago, the_dylaness said:

 

We do, although I am not sure it will cover all the costs... it was a policy we carried over from an October 2020 TA (our first time ever buying trip insurance was that, actually).

Policies are different but all my costs got covered when I had an emergency medical condition a week before a cruise. Did you book through a travel agent? My travel agent did all the work. Dealt with the insurance which I bought thru him. All I had to do was get the doctors signed report. That is one plus about booking with a good TA. 

Edited May 27, 2022 by Charles4515

[chemmo]

What a mess…I know nothing about kidney stones nor your options for cancelling if things don’t work out…

 

Just posting to wish your husband a speedy recovery, hoping you all manage a great cruise but if that isn’t possible at least a decent outcome from X or insurance.

 

Sincere best wishes.

[LB_NJ]

1 hour ago, wrk2cruise said:

When was the positive covid test?  If it was within 14 days of the sailing date I would check with Celebrity as all in "your traveling party" would be eligible for a refund or FCC and I believe this covers Celebrity air as well.

 

 

Celebrity has a 10 day policy, not 14.  Just get a PCR test (more sensitive) and it will probably turn up positive.

 

FYI, while larger cities will have more then one lithotripsy location they tend to book up in advance unless the doctor thinks it is an urgent/emergency situation.  And Monday is memorial day.

[wrk2cruise]

1 hour ago, LB_NJ said:

Celebrity has a 10 day policy, not 14.  Just get a PCR test (more sensitive) and it will probably turn up positive.

 

Ok.  Yes they must have changed it when they started accepting Certificate of Recovery.

[Shelley G]

My sympathies to your husband. I had my first kidney stone 1 week before I was to leave for a land tour of Macchu Pichu. Actually, the kidney stone saved my life because while the stone was in my left kidney, they discovered a renal cell carcinoma in my right kidney. I later had my right kidney removed. 
In any case, the doctor wrote a note that it was unadvisable to travel. My travel insurance covered all costs, but it took time and filling out all the paperwork was a pain.  

[Jim_Iain]

Sorry to hear of your husbands kidney stones. 

 

My understanding is that options will be dependent on when you booked.  If you booked before March 31 and cruise is before September 30th you are covered by "Cruise with Confidence"     This will allow you to cancel within 48 hours and get FCC.      If purchased after March 31 you will have to rely on insurance.

 

As for your daughter.    A COR is an option but the requirements for Celebrity are that the Positive Results must be on a PCR TEST.  The COR is issued at 10 days from the date on the PCR test.   If she tested with an Antigen LFT she will not be able to get one for Cruisisng.     If that is the case hope she tests negative soon.   I tested positive through day 11.

 

[TeaBag]

I hope you get this resolved so you can go on your cruise.

DH has lots of experience with kidney stones having had 20+.  The last one was 5mm and he treated it himself with liquid THC which is legal here.  Two days later he passed the stone.  I don't know if you have access where you are. Drinking lots of water is good advice but beer is better as it relaxes the tubes maybe making it possible to pass the stone. Would it be possible to go to Emerg and get a shot of Demerol?  

[the_dylaness]

Hi all, cruise was booked sometime in 2021 so we are ok on that front.

 

We spent last night in the ER, not a pleasant experience.

 

Met with the urologist today- stone retrieval and stent placement scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.  Just in time for our Wednesday morning departure...

 

Looks like our travel insurance will cover the cost of the trip (although we could get an FCC) but not the airfare due to an error on our TAs part.  Or we can use it to cover the airfare and get an FCC but not sure that is optimal.

 

At this time we are thinking optimistically and hoping that they'll be able to retrieve the stone, place the removable kind of stent for me to take out on the cruise, and actually go.  Fingers crossed.  Our COVID + traveler is much improved, has as an appropriately timed PCR, and we are really thinking maybe, just maybe this will work.

[hcat]

Personally, with regard to the kidney stone..wouldn't you want to have non rushed treatment and recovery without all the complications of a cruise? . I'd be nervous unless I knew it could be passed.,over and done with no issues!

 

I had a  painful surprise  gall bladder attack about 7 days before a Carib  cruise some yrs ago.   Sonogram showed bad location and imminent  concern.   2 drs agreed that  taking a risk  I would need surgery outside of the US  was not a wise option...so we cancelled.  The Basic Royal C Cruise care ins at the time covered the refund..minus cost of the ins.   I was so sad... the day of our cancelled cruise was the day of my surgery.   But a few months later, a last minute cabin in a great location, same ship, opened up at a great price..We were able to book...so it worked out. Any by then I was feeling much better!

 

 Covid issues and overlapping ins issues make your case more complicated...but health comes first! Good luck

[broadwaybaby123]

I would talk to Celebrity and let them know what's going on.  See what they say, they may be willing to work with you.

[Mr. Click]

Kidney stores, yuck.  They  are truly the worst.  From my own experience I would look into canceling now.  6mm is beyond what they will normally let you try and pass.  My last one was 4mm, and stuck.  After 2 days, because it hit on a Saturday AM they did a  laser procedure to blast it but it was still 10 days before I felt well enough to do much.  The thought of sitting on an airplane for a long trip is not appealing at all.  This is not medical advice, just based on my own experiences. I was lucky and got seen and treated quickly but it was still 12 days start to finish for me.  

[islabahia]

I know that you want to cruise but do you really want to chance your hubby having problems while on the cruise?  My DH has had stones for years and had lithotripsy numerous times and it's not fun.  He had one outpatient litho and one in hospital and he was wiped out.  You will decide what is best for you and your family….just sharing our experiences with kidney stones.

[carolyn22]

I have to agree with the others about being reluctant to do this surgery one day and fly to Rome the next. I don’t know about other’s experiences, but the stent was almost as bad as the kidney stone pain for me. I constantly felt like I had to pee, sometimes successfully but most of the times not. The pressure was unbearable at times. I can’t imagine getting on a plane for a long flight feeling like I needed to be in the bathroom every 15 minutes. He will still be passing smaller pieces of the busted up stone, and I’ve had a few instances where those smaller pieces still really hurt. They took my stent out 2 days after my procedure (that didn’t hurt), and I felt fine for about 15 minutes and the pain really hit. It went on for over a week. They said my ureter was so ripped up from the stone (7 mm) and the procedure that I was having spasms. 
 

I’m guessing the doctor who he saw said it would be OK to fly to Rome the day after the lithotripsy, so obviously you should listen to him. I’m just passing along my experience. 
 

Best case scenario is if he passes it on his own. One previous poster said to drink beer. I had completely forgotten to tell him to try that. I was always scared to try that because more than one beer is too much for me in good times, and I also don’t like to mix beer with pain pills. Hopefully the doctor also prescribed flomax to help relax his urinary track. That can help, too. 
 

Best of luck to your husband!!  I truly do hope that he passes the stone soon and you’ll be able to go on your cruise. 

[emmas gran]

Cost a friend £16000+ to get a kidney stone treated on vacation - she didn't know she had it before travelling. It took a while for insurance to reimburse the cost as the hospital would not treat her without a credit card and took payment.

This was 9 years ago.

Edited May 28, 2022 by emmas gran

[mickeysgal]

My father just had a stent for a large kidney stone and I’ll tell you- he was uncomfortable, in pain and feeling like he had to pee constantly. He also had blood when he peed.  I would really really consider rescheduling this cruise. This is not an easy thing to endure.