Symptoms of low back pain due to kidney disease

Kidneys are not only possessed by men, women also have kidneys, so both may suffer from kidney disease. There are many types of kidney disease, so the symptoms are also different. For example, diseases such as rapidly progressive nephritis and renal cysts will cause bloating and dull pain, accompanied by high blood pressure, edema and other symptoms. Renal abscess will cause unilateral low back pain accompanied by fever and chills.

Four categories of low back pain caused by kidney disease

1. Kidney enlargement caused by renal parenchymal diseases : mainly seen in acute glomerulonephritis, rapidly progressive nephritis, etc.

Pain symptoms: The enlarged kidney involves the renal capsule, causing persistent distending pain and dull pain.

Associated symptoms: Some patients also have gross hematuria, edema, hypertension, etc.

2. Kidney infectious diseases: often seen in renal abscess, early symptoms of acute pyelonephritis, etc., mainly caused by bacterial infection.

Pain symptoms: mostly unilateral low back pain, unbearable with pressing and percussion examination.

Associated symptoms: often accompanied by fever and chills.

3. Kidney tumors or cysts: such as renal cysts, polycystic kidney disease, benign and malignant tumors, etc.

Pain symptoms: If the cyst or tumor is large enough and involves the renal capsule, it will cause persistent distension and dull pain.

4. Kidney stones

Pain symptoms: If the stone is impacted in the ureter, renal colic will occur, which manifests as intermittent, paroxysmal severe colic that may radiate to the perineum.

Associated symptoms: profuse sweating, nausea and vomiting, and in severe cases, gross hematuria.

How to identify low back pain caused by kidney disease?

If flank and abdominal cramps are accompanied by hematuria, it is usually caused by kidney or ureteral stone obstruction, and a urine test, kidney CT, intravenous pyelography, or renal scintigraphy (ECT) is required to confirm the diagnosis. If there is obvious percussion pain on one side of the waist, accompanied by fever and elevated white blood cell count, it may be acute pyelonephritis, pyonephrosis or renal abscess, which requires blood and urine tests, renal ultrasound and CT to confirm the diagnosis. If the pain is chronic on one side of the waist, it may be caused by polycystic kidney, giant renal cyst, renal tumor, hydronephrosis, etc., and requires renal ultrasound and CT to confirm the diagnosis. If there is a fixed feeling of soreness or pain in both kidney areas, it may be a kidney disease, such as acute nephritis, rapidly progressive nephritis (crescentic nephritis), acute renal damage (acute renal failure), lupus nephritis type 4, and crescentic changes in purpuric nephritis. Renal biopsy, urine protein quantification, renal function tests and autoantibody tests are required for a confirmed diagnosis. Many patients wonder whether chronic nephritis, renal atrophy and low back pain are related. Generally speaking, chronic renal changes such as kidney shrinkage will not cause low back pain. If low back pain does occur, spinal problems should be considered more.

At this point, patients should be aware that low back pain is not only caused by kidney disease. Kidney disease does not necessarily cause low back pain. If the lower back pain is not caused by kidney disease, the lower back pain will not be relieved even if the kidney disease is cured. Even so, if you have lower back pain you should still not give up on kidney examinations; at least you need to rule out kidney disease.