Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA)
Kidney Disease
The kidneys are bean-shaped organs, normally paired, that lie deep within the abdomen on either side of the lumbar spine. They play a critical role in filtering the blood and in helping maintain normal physiologic levels of important minerals and electrolytes and also help govern total body water content. The kidneys also contribute hormones into the circulation that can affect blood pressure. The kidneys have collecting systems for gathering urine and are connected to long muscular tubes, called ureters, that transmit urine into the bladder for storage and later excretion.
Many different kinds of diseases can affect the kidneys, ureters and bladder as well as the vessels that supply blood to and drain blood from these organs. These include acute and chronic infections, autoimmune diseases, clotting disorders that can affect the renal arteries or veins, cancer (both primary and secondary), trauma, kidney (renal) stone disease and a host of developmental and congenital disorders. Medical imaging continues to play a critical role in both the initial diagnosis and treatment follow-up for most diseases. Pre-surgical planning is greatly aided by the use of imaging, especially in patients being considered for renal donation (transplant), surgical resection for cancer, ureteral obstruction, and stone disease as well as in the evaluation of patients who have already received a transplanted kidney.
This page contains the following information about kidney disease:
- Facts About Kidney Disease
- Risk Factors
- Reducing the Risk
- Symptoms of Kidney Disease
- Imaging Exams for Detecting Kidney Disease
- Radiology Procedures for Treating Kidney Disease
- Additional Information
Facts About Kidney Disease
Following are some facts about a few of the many conditions that can affect the kidneys.
- According to the National Kidney Foundation, almost 20 million adult Americans have chronic kidney disease and another 20 million are at risk of developing it.
- Many people with chronic kidney disease don’t realize they have it until their kidney function is less than 25% of normal.
- About 600,000 people in the United States have polycystic kidney disease.
- Polycystic kidney disease is one of the most common hereditary diseases and affects all races and both genders equally.
- Serious complications of polycystic kidney disease include hypertension and kidney failure.
- About 35,000 Americans are diagnosed with kidney cancer each year and more than 12,000 die from it.
- Kidney cancer seldom causes symptoms in its early stages. However, if kidney cancer is found and treated early, there is a good chance for a full recovery.
- Smokers are twice as likely to develop kidney cancer as non-smokers.
- 1 in 10 Americans will have at least one kidney stone sometime during their life.
Risk Factors
Following are the risk factors for some kidney conditions:
Chronic Kidney Disease
Diabetes is the single greatest risk factor for chronic kidney disease. Following are some additional risk factors for chronic kidney disease:
- High blood pressure
- Family history of any type of kidney problems
- Sickle cell disease
- Lupus
- Atherosclerosis
- Chronic glomerulonephritis
- Congenital nephrotic syndrome
- Polycystic kidney disease
- Drug overdose
- Excessive alcohol consumption
- Long-term use of pain medications, such as aspirin, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen
- Treatment with the antibiotics streptomycin or gentamicin
Polycystic Kidney Disease
Polycystic kidney disease is caused solely by abnormal genes.
Kidney Cancer
Following are some risk factors for developing kidney cancer:
- Between the ages of 50 and 70
- Family history of kidney cancer
- Cigarette smoking
- Overweight
- High blood pressure
- Exposure to environmental toxins
- Long-term dialysis
- Exposure to radiation or industrial chemicals
- Inactive lifestyle
- von Hippel-Lindau disease
- Hereditary papillary renal cell carcinoma
- Hereditary renal oncocytoma
Kidney Stones
Following are some risk factors for developing kidney stones:
- Insufficient fluid intake, especially water
- Personal history of kidney stones
- Family history of kidney stones
- Between the ages of 20 and 60
- High protein, low fiber diet
- Very sedentary lifestyle
- Recurring urinary tract infections
Reducing the Risk
Following are ways you can reduce your risk for some kidney conditions:
Chronic Kidney Disease
It may not be possible to prevent chronic kidney disease; however, you may reduce your risk in the following ways:
- Limit alcohol consumption
- Don’t abuse drugs
- If you have a condition that increases your chances of chronic kidney failure, follow your doctor’s recommendations carefully
Polycystic Kidney Disease
There are no ways to reduce the risk of PKD since it is solely an inherited illness. However, the disease varies in severity and it is possible to lessen or prevent some of the complications.
Kidney Cancer
There are no proven methods for preventing kidney cancer; however the following steps may reduce your risk:
- Quit smoking
- Eat a healthy diet high in fruits and vegetables and low in fat
- Exercise regularly
- Maintain a healthy weight
- Avoid exposure to environmental toxins
- Reduce high blood pressure
Kidney Stones
You may prevent kidney stones by making some lifestyle changes, including those listed below. If lifestyle changes don’t suffice, your doctor may prescribe medication.
- Drink at least 3½ quarts of fluid, preferable water, every day; more if you live in a hot, dry climate
- Restrict foods high in oxalates, including meat (especially organ meat), chicken, certain fish, chocolate, and berries
- Restrict your salt intake
Symptoms of Kidney Disease
Following are symptoms for some kidney conditions:
Chronic Kidney Failure
Over time, chronic kidney failure can lead to other serious conditions. Unfortunately, symptoms often don’t occur until irreversible damage has been done. Following are some symptoms of chronic kidney failure:
- High blood pressure
- Unexplained weight loss
- Anemia
- Nausea or vomiting
- Fatigue
- Unexplained headaches
- Decreased urine output
- Decreased mental sharpness
- Muscle twitches and cramps
- Bleeding in the intestines
- Yellowish-brown cast to the skin
- Persistent itching
- Difficulty sleeping
Polycystic Kidney Disease
Following are some of the symptoms of PKD:
- High blood pressure
- Back or side pain related to enlarged kidneys
- Abdominal pain swelling
- Blood in your urine
- Kidney stones
- Kidney failure
- Kidney or frequent urinary tract infections
- Brain aneurysm
- Diverticulosis
- Liver or pancreatic cysts
- Abnormal heart valves
Kidney Cancer
Kidney cancer seldom produces symptoms in its early stages. In its later stages, the most common symptom is blood in the urine. You may notice the blood during urination, or it may be detected in a urinalysis done by your physician.
Following are other potential symptoms of kidney cancer:
- Persistent, unexplained pain in your back below your ribs
- Mass in the area of your kidneys
- Unexplained weight loss
- Fatigue
- Intermittent, unexplained fever
- Swelling of the ankles and legs
These symptoms, including blood in the urine, may be caused by other illnesses also. If you have any of these symptoms, promptly consult your primary care physician to determine the cause.
Kidney Stones
Kidney stones often don’t have symptoms until they become large, cause a blockage, are being passed, or are associated with an infection. In these cases, the most common symptom is intense pain that may fluctuate. The pain usually starts in the back and may radiate down to the groin as the stone travels through the ureter to the bladder. Additional symptoms include:
- Bloody, cloudy or foul-smelling urine
- Nausea and vomiting
- Persistent urge to urinate
- Burning during urination
- Fever and chills
Imaging Exams for Detecting Kidney Disease
CT, ultrasound, MRI, conventional catheter angiography and nuclear medicine all have different roles to play and are often complimentary in the work-up of kidney disease.
CT scans are used most often to evaluate the kidneys, especially in the evaluation of trauma patients and patients with suspected kidney stones. CT and MRI are both very good in the evaluation of the renal arteries. CT urograms (an x-ray exam using contrast material) are now commonly performed in our offices and partner hospitals to evaluate patients with hematuria and certain types of cancer. This study provides diagnostic information about the kidneys, ureters and bladder with one test and has largely replaced a combination approach with multiple studies used in the past for certain types of patients.
Both MRI and CT are excellent at evaluating focal renal abnormalities such as cysts, renal cell carcinoma, angiomyolipomas, infarcts, lymphoma and transitional cell carcinomas and both are excellent tools to help stage cancers, once diagnosed. Ultrasound is also often used to characterize focal renal lesions with the additional benefit of no ionizing radiation. Ultrasound is a fast, noninvasive way to evaluate the size and contour of the kidneys as well as to assess the renal vessels and detect obstruction of the kidneys from a variety of causes. Nuclear medicine renal scans play an important part in the workup of unexplained hypertension, obstruction, renal transplant complications and the staging and follow-up of cancer patients.
Radiology Procedures for Treating Kidney Disease
Radiofrequency ablation is a non-surgical way to shrink malignant tumors in the kidneys. Imaging techniques are used to guide a catheter through the blood vessels to the site of the tumor, where heat is applied directly to the tumor site to destroy the diseased tissue.
Additional Information
The information on this page was taken in part from some of the following web sites. Visit these sites for additional information on kidney disease.
Sources
- Mayo Clinic (Kidney Cancer)
- Mayo Clinic (Chronic Kidney Failure)
- Mayo Clinic (PKD)
- Mayo Clinic (Kidney Stones)
- American Cancer Society
- National Kidney Disease Education Program
- WebMD Health (Chronic Kidney Failure)
- WebMD Health (PKD)
- American Foundation of Urologic Disease
