Roger Yau MD

Myth: A urologist is a doctor for men like an OB/GYN is for women.

Truth: A urologist is a genitourinary surgeon that treats both men AND women. The genitourinary (GU) tract includes kidneys, ureters, bladder, prostate, and the male/female genitals.

The name, urologist, is a bit confusing to the average person because it is not very descriptive. “Is that the same as a urine-ologist?” The answer is no. We definitely know our urine but we do so much more! The same confusion existed for other specialties like proctology and otolaryngology. Those may sound faintly familiar since they are now old terms for colorectal surgery and ENT (ears nose throat). Unfortunately urologic surgery, genitourinary surgery, or KUB (kidney ureter bladder) doc doesn’t carry the same descriptiveness or “catchiness” so we are stuck with the term urologist. Now if you say that fast, sometimes it gets confused with neurologist. And now people wonder if you are a brain surgeon or you’re going to treat their migraine. That’s a whole different issue!

Bottom line, a urologist is a surgeon that deals with any problem in the genitourinary tract. We deal with many types of cancer, kidney stones, cosmetic issues, infections, male fertility, incontinence, and flow issues to name a few. In fact, other doctors (including myself) call us the “plumbers” of the human body. We do have some overlap with other fields of medicine like general surgery, pediatric surgery, and uro-gynecology but in general, urologists are the only ones trained in performing surgery on the GU tract. See the Services section for a more detailed list of what I do.

“Doc, I was told I need dialysis? You’re a kidney doctor right?” Yes but also no, you need a nephrologist… confused yet?

-Roger Yau, M.D.

The Southeast US is what urologists call the “stone belt” which geographically stretches out towards the Southwest. The hot climate, diet, and drinking habits of these areas contribute for the highest incidence of kidney stones per year. North Carolina happens to be one of the top states for kidney stones.

Kidney stones form when the urine has too little water and becomes super-saturated like making rock candy from sugar and water.

Top 3 tips to prevent kidney stones: 

1. Drink more water. If you’ve had a stone before you need to drink 2.5 liters or 84 ounces of water daily.
2. Eat less salt. 
3. Eat less animals. Add a few vegetarian meals or days to your diet. Animal protein contributes to stone formation.

If you have repeated stones, you should see me for a 24 hour urine analysis and we can talk about diet changes and medications that can help you be stone free!

As a whole, doctors are a fun, humorous group of people. We have achieved great things just by surviving the rigors of medical school and residency so we have a work hard/play hard mentality. However, out of all the specialties, urologists are probably the funniest given the geographic nature of our field.

That being said, I have graduated fellowship at Cleveland Clinic; the #1 urology program and #2 overall hospital in the country. I have settled down in Charlotte, NC and joined a group of very highly knowledgeable and skilled urologists in private practice. But since it’s urology, I am in the “privates” practice.

The name of the group is Urology Specialists of the Carolinas. I have an office in Matthews and Pineville and will be operating at both Atrium Health and Novant Health. I completed a fellowship and did the majority of my research on single port robotic surgery with the brand new da Vinci SP robot (launched 9/2018) so my interest is in oncology and robotic surgery. However, I am well trained in general urology and will be seeing patients for kidney stones, prostate issues, urination issues, erectile dysfunction, men’s health, and female incontinence.

I am happy and grateful to my previous mentors for such amazing medical and surgical training. I am eager to set up a busy practice and treat the good people of Charlotte, NC!

The first residency program was established in 1889 by Dr. William Osler at Johns Hopkins Hospital where staff doctors lived in the hospital and trained for many years.

In the current day, resident physicians or “residents” train in a chosen specialty for a set number of years before graduating and practicing medicine on their own. Residents are not students anymore, they are doctors in training. The process is grueling, demanding, and accompanied by long hours. However, this is not without reason. Young doctors must learn everything about their specialty and be exposed to as much as possible to be the best they can be.

Hospitals with residency programs are known as teaching hospitals and are often the centers of excellence with the best outcomes. For a patient, receiving care from a resident does not mean the care is lesser quality or that they are “a guinea pig” being used as practice. All residency programs are structured with supervision from an attending physician with scaled levels of autonomy. Attending physicians are fully licensed doctors that have already completed residency training. This has been the system to train the world’s best doctors since the 1890’s.