Kidney Pain Vs Back Pain
Sometimes it can be difficult to distinguish between kidney pain and back pain. Some muscular problems in the back or other diseases can mimic kidney pain. Dr. Davis goes on to explain that pain that comes from your kidneys is usually accompanied by other symptoms. For example, you may notice changes in your urination or you may have a fever.3
Usually, back pain is distinguished from kidney pain because it may get better or worse when moving the back muscles. Unlike kidney stone pain which comes on in sharp, painful waves, back pain is more constant and connected with movement.
In general, flank or kidney pain is usually higher in the back just under the ribs and the pain sensation is deeper. Back pain that is muscular is usually in the lower back.
Blockage Of Blood To The Kidney
A blockage of blood to the kidney is called a renal infarction or a renal vein thrombosis. This happens when the blood supply to and from the kidney is suddenly slowed or stopped. There are several causes, including a blood clot.
Blood flow blockages to the kidney typically happens on one side. Symptoms include:
- severe side or flank pain
- lower back pain or ache
- stomach tenderness
- blood in the urine
Kidney And Flank Pain Causes
A number of different infections or injuries can cause kidney or flank pain. The most common causes include:
- Kidney stones: Masses made up of crystals that form in your urine and build up in your kidneys that can cause severe pain, especially during urination. They can be passed manually or, in more serious cases, removed surgically.
- Pyelonephritis An infection caused by bacteria traveling up from the bladder or from the blood into the kidneys.
- Polycystic;kidney disease : A genetic disease in which normal kidney tissue is replaced by cysts, PKD can cause the kidney to stop working.
- Kidney infarction: A rare condition in which kidney blood flow is disrupted. This can lead to acute kidney injury, decreased kidney function, kidney disease, and death.
- Hemorrhage of the kidney: A bleed in the kidney, possible from multiple causes.
- Kidney canceror tumor: Benign or cancerous masses in the kidney. Kidney cancer is found most often in older adults, with more men affected than women.
- Renal vein thrombosis: A clot that develops in the vein that drains blood from the kidneys.
In addition to kidney problems, upper back and side pain also can be caused by physical injury, arthritis, or gallbladder or gastrointestinal diseases. Its important to know when to seek care.
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There’s Blood In Your Urine
Hematuria ;is enough to send anyone to a trip to the doctor, where you could be diagnosed with a variety of things including a kidney stone, kidney infection, cystic kidney disease, a tumor, or a kidney injury.
But blood in your urine isn’t always a sign of a major kidney issue. There are also more benign causes of hematuria, including extreme exercise or the commonly misdiagnosed excessive consumption of beets, labeled as “beeturia.”
The Need To Monitor Kidney Function With Certain Drugs
Experts have suggested that after the initial assessment of kidney function, physicians should consider regular monitoring after starting or increasing the dosage of drugs associated with nephrotoxicity, especially those used chronically in patients with multiple risk factors for impaired kidney function, Dr. Naughton noted. If there is any sign of kidney harm, the provider should review the medications you are taking in order to identify which one is causing the problem.
If multiple medications are present and the patient is clinically stable, physicians should start by discontinuing the drug most recently added to the patients medication regimen. Once that has been taken care of, further harm to the kidneys may be minimized by keeping blood pressure stable, staying hydrated, and temporarily avoiding the use of other medications that may cause nephrotoxicity.
These safety tips can ensure you get the care you need while keeping your kidneys safe. That way, they can tend to essential functions like keeping things flowing .Originally published May 11, 2017
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What Are The Treatment Options For Hydronephrosis
Treatment for hydronephrosis primarily focuses on getting rid of whatever is blocking the flow of urine. The treatment option your doctor chooses for you will depend on the cause of your obstruction.
If a blocked ureter is causing your condition, your doctor might need to do any of the following:
- insert a ureteral stent, which is a tube that allows the ureter to drain into the bladder
- insert a nephrostomy tube, which allows the blocked urine to drain through the back
- prescribe antibiotics to control infection
Your doctor might have to remove the obstruction with surgery. If something like scar tissue or a blood clot is causing the blockage, your doctor might remove the affected area completely. They can then reconnect the healthy ends of your ureter to restore normal urine flow.
If the cause of your hydronephrosis is a kidney stone, you may need surgery to remove it. To do this, your doctor might perform endoscopic surgery, which involves using tiny instruments to perform the procedure. This drastically reduces your healing and recovery time.
Your doctor might also prescribe you antibiotics. This will help ensure you dont develop a kidney infection.
Telltale Signs You Have A Kidney Stone
Most people have two kidneys located behind their abdominal organs along the middle of their back. The purpose of your kidneys is to filter blood and send any waste thats collected into your urine.
Sometimes, these waste products build up and form small, hard deposits called kidney stones. Stones develop inside kidneys, but they exit the body through the urinary tract.
Because the ureter is small, passing a stone can cause complications inside the urinary tract, as well as a range of unpleasant symptoms from abdominal pain to nausea. About 1 in 10 Americans will experience at least one kidney stone in their lifetime, but learning to recognize the telltale signs of a kidney stone isnt always easy especially if youve never had one.
Our team at Advanced Urology in Redondo Beach, Culver City, and Los Angeles, California, is here to help. While small stones might pass without your knowledge, larger stones can cause excruciating pain. Make an appointment at Advanced Urology if you have
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How Bad Can Foods Trigger Chronic Kidney Diseases
Processed foods or canned foods have high sodium, potassium, protein, and fat content, which demands extra work by your kidneys to purify your blood from unnecessary substances that are no longer needed by your body. This continuous process of filtration develops inflammation inside your kidneys filtering units . Glomeruli are a cluster of tiny blood tubules which are primed to purify your blood from chemical toxins and other waste materials. Due to inflammation, glomeruli fail to function properly, and this gives a spike to the level of waste products inside the blood, which makes the bloodstream thick and obstruct blood supply throughout the body. Chronic kidney failure is a serious health condition that gets worse with time. A person suffering from chronic kidney failure is at higher risk of developing some chronic illnesses such as high blood pressure, brain tumor, stroke, and even heart attack in severe cases.
How To Tell If Its Kidney Pain Or Back Pain
Your kidneys are located just below the ribcage, with each kidney positioned on either side of your spine. Kidneys help to filter toxins and extra fluids from the body to ensure the rest of your body works normally. Common causes of kidney pain include UTIs, kidney infections, and kidney stones. Because your kidneys rest against your back muscles, it can sometimes be difficult to differentiate kidney pain from back pain. To help you distinguish between the two, were breaking down the signs and symptoms of how to tell if its back pain or kidney pain.
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What Side Is Your Kidney On
Answers to commonly asked questions about a critical waste-removal system
“What side is your kidney on?” people ask, as they wonder whether that agony they’re feeling is coming from a kidney.
The answer, of course, is both sides! You have two kidneys, one on either side of your body.
Too often people dont understand or appreciate these important, fist-sized organs until something goes wrong with them. So for this blog, were going to share some interesting facts about kidneys.;
Where are the kidneys located?
- Your kidneys live in the upper part of your abdomen, just under your rib cage.
- Your right kidney is found a bit lower than your left one, to make room for the liver.
What do they look like?
- Your kidneys are shaped like beans .;
- Theyre about 4 or 5 inches long.
What do kidneys do?
- Kidneys help remove waste and excess liquids from your body. They do that thanks to tiny filters called nephrons that pick up the waste that will leave your body as urine. They filter all the blood in your body several times a day.
- They produce hormones that regulate blood pressure and tell your body when to make more red blood cells.;
- They help make sure the volume of liquid in your body doesnt fluctuate too much. Thats why if youre losing a lot of water through sweat, you wont need to urinate as often.;
Why do kidneys hurt?
Why do kidneys stop working?
- A number of problems can cause kidney disease, including diabetes, high blood pressure, and inflammation of the kidneys.
Upset Stomach Nausea Vomiting
Why this happens:
A severe build-up of wastes in the blood can also cause nausea and vomiting. Loss of appetite can lead to weight loss.
What patients said:
I had a lot of itching, and I was nauseated, throwing up all the time. I couldn’t keep anything down in my stomach.
When I got the nausea, I couldn’t eat and I had a hard time taking my blood pressure pills.
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What Is The Function Of The Kidneys
The excess waste products and excess fluid are removed when the kidneys produce urine that is excreted from the body. Moreover, the kidneys play an important role in the regulation of the body’s salt, potassium, and acid content.
The kidneys also produce hormones that stimulate the production of red blood cells that help regulate blood pressure and help control calcium and electrolyte metabolism in the body.
Renal Tumors Or Cysts
Renal tumors or cysts do not typically cause pain unless the growth is advanced or the disbursement is extensive. The three most common growth abnormalities include:
- Renal adenoma: A type of benign tumor that can grow to a substantial size
- Renal cell carcinoma : A type of cancer that usually begins in the tubules of the kidneys
- Polycystic kidney disease : An inherited disorder in which benign, fluid-filled cysts proliferate throughout the kidneys
The pain would most often be unilateral and accompanied by hematuria, either visible or invisible .
If cancer is involved, persistent malaise and unexplained weight loss are telltale signs suggestive of an advanced malignancy.
PKD may also be symptom-free until such time as the formation of cysts causes structural damage to the kidney. In addition to flank pain, usually bilateral, PKD may cause progressively worsening symptoms, including headaches, high blood pressure, hematuria, abdominal pain and swelling, recurrent kidney stones, recurrent UTIs, and renal failure.
As opposed to many of the other renal conditions, PKD is associated with excessive urination rather than impaired urination.Â;The most common form of PKD, known as autosomal dominant PKD, manifests with symptoms when patients are in their 30s and 40s. Around 10% will advance to renal failure.
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Types Of Kidney Stones
Kidney stonesvary in composition depending on the type of minerals in the urine:
- Calcium forms about 80 percent of kidney stones mostly calcium oxalate and, in some cases, calcium phosphate.
- Uric acid crystals tend to form stones in acidic urine. The following contribute to acidic urine: excess weight, chronic diarrhea, type 2 diabetes, gout and diets high in protein and low in fruits and vegetables.
- Struvite forms in alkaline urine, often related to chronic urinary tract infections.
- Cystine is an amino acid that forms stones when in high concentration, due to a rare inherited condition. This is the rarest form of kidney stones.
Stones that form in your kidneys are not the same as bladder stones. Bladder stones develop in different ways. But small kidney stones may travel down the ureters into your bladder and, if not expelled, can grow into bladder stones.
The most common cause of kidney stones is dehydration. Youre not drinking enough water to dilute the concentration of minerals in your urine.
You’re Experiencing Pain In Certain Parts Of Your Lower Back
Generally, kidney pain will occur near your lower back and it will typically be more concentrated on the sides of your body. Urinary tract infections, kidney stones, and injuries are some of the common causes of this type of pain.
The kidney pain may be sharp or dull or concentrated on one or both sides of your body. Depending on its cause, the pain could also extend further south if a kidney stone is traveling through your body or a kidney infection has spread to your bladder.
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When Should I See My Doctor About Kidney Pain
You should see your doctor immediately if you are experiencing the following symptoms:
- Worsening, dull pain in one side of your back or flank
- Body aches, fatigue, fever
- Recent;urinary tract infection
If you suddenly experience severe kidney pain, with or without blood in your urine, you should seek emergency medical care. Sudden, severe pain can often be a sign of a blood clot or hemorrhage, and you should be evaluated immediately.
Dr. Rondon says if you notice symptoms like a change in your urines color, a fever, or if your pain doesnt improve, seek a doctor. For emergency situations, you should go to the emergency department. For other situations, contact your primary care physician for a referral to a nephrologist or urologist.
For more information on kidney pain, talk to your doctor or visit the UPMC kidney disease webpage. Do you have flank pain? Check out our article on the 3 Common Causes of Flank Pain to learn more.
American Kidney Fund, Kidney Pain
Anton J. Bueschen,;Clinical Methods: The History, Physical, and Laboratory Examinations, 3rd Edition, Flank Pain
National Kidney Foundation, 3 Early Signs of Kidney Disease
National Kidney Foundation, How Your Kidneys Work
If It Hurts In Your Mid
Back pain is common, with as many as eight in 10 people experiencing it at some point in their lives. But what does it mean if youre having a specific type of discomfort called flank pain? Your flanks are the areas around the sides of your body from your upper abdomen to your back. If youre having discomfort in this region, either as right or left flank pain, the cause may be one of the following conditions.
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How Do You Know If You Have Kidney Pain
Kidney pain, or renal pain, is usually felt in your back . It can spread to other areas, like the sides, upper abdomen or groin. If you have a kidney stone, you usually feel the pain in your back, side, lower belly or groin.
Back pain due to muscle problems is usually in your lower back. Pain due to kidney problems is usually deeper and higher in your back, under your ribs.
Signs that it is a kidney problem can also include fever, vomiting, pain in your sides or painful urination.
Medications That Can Harm The Kidneys
No matter what kind of medicine you take, whether OTC or prescription, it is destined to take a trip through your kidneys. Taking a drug the wrong way or in excessive amounts can damage these vital, bean-shaped organs and lead to serious complications. In the worst-case scenario, it could necessitate a kidney transplant.
Compared with 30 years ago, patients todayhave a higher incidence of diabetes and cardiovascular disease, take multiple medications, and are exposed to more diagnostic and therapeutic procedures with the potential to harm kidney function, according to Cynthia A. Naughton, PharmD, senior associate dean and associate professor in the department of pharmacy practice at North Dakota State University. All of these factors are associated with an elevated risk of kidney damage.
An estimated 20% of cases of acute kidney failure are due to medications. The technical term for this scenario is nephrotoxicity, which is growing more common as the aging population grows, along with rates of various diseases.
The kidneys get rid of waste and extra fluid in the body by filtering the blood to produce urine. They also keep electrolyte levels balanced and make hormones that influence blood pressure, bone strength and the production of red blood cells. When something interferes with the kidneys, they cant do their job, so these functions can slow down or stop altogether.
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