Pain in the kidneys

How often do we say that kidneys hurt, when we feel discomfort in the lumbar region. It’s not difficult to understand, because most people have an internal location of the kidneys is projected in the lumbar region.

Location

The kidneys are in the abdominal cavity and surrounded by a protective fatty “apron“. The bodies are in the shape of Bob bean and a bit stretched in length.

Therefore, the top left can be placed on a level XI pairs of ribs and the upper edge of the right can be found just below a couple of inches, as above it is a voluminous organ, the liver. The bottom edge in a small variation may not reach the level of the iliac crest 4 cm

The back side area corresponding to the location of the kidneys, can be defined as lower back and lumbar.

What can be confused

Due to this arrangement, the pain in the kidneys, can often be confused with other pathologies.

For example, related to disease of the spine:

• degenerative changes in cartilage is osteochondrosis;
• herniated discs;
• the displacement of the vertebrae;
• fracture of the spinous processes;
• tumors of the spinal cord/spine;
• scoliosis or kyphosis (curvature of the spine);
• infectious lesions of the spine (tuberculosis, brucellosis and myelitis).

Lower back pain give diseases of the spine or back muscles

Besides pain in the kidneys may actually be caused by illnesses of the muscles of the back:

• the myositis – inflammation of muscle;
• tendinitis – inflammation of the connective tissue in the tendons.

How do you know that back pain not kidney

Initially you should estimate what preceded the emergence of pain. Perhaps the body was a long time in an uncomfortable position or was the moment of injury – shock, drop, stretch. Stress and physical overexertion, pregnancy – factors that inevitably cause back pain. Especially after childbirth women say that with a stuffy nose, but in most cases it’s not their disease, and that the ligaments become looser and increases the load on the spine. He shifted anteriorly and the back muscles are constantly in tension.

But we should not forget that during pregnancy and the kidney bear a double burden, therefore, every manifestation of the pain of a pregnant woman should be carefully investigated, and it is necessary to establish the cause.

Pain in the kidneys can be confused with disease of the adjacent organs

In addition, note that anatomically the kidneys in contact with a lot of internal organs – liver, stomach, pancreas, adrenal glands, spleen, and various departments of intestines. Accordingly, many diseases of these organs may be mistakenly perceived as renal pain.

They also include:

• pleurisy;
• aortic aneurysm abdominal;
• gynaecological diseases.

Associated symptoms

Map of pain: 1 – heart, 2 – lungs 3-liver and gall bladder, 4-stomach and pancreas, 5-small intestine 6 – Appendix and the colon, 7-KIDNEY, 8 – bladder 9-ovaries

There are a number of symptoms that are characteristic of diseases of the genitourinary system.

Some of them nonspecific (i.e., can meet and other diseases):

• Fatigue, weakness, loss of appetite.
• Difficulties with concentration, sleep problems.
• The skin is dry and itchy.
• Frequent urge to urinate, the process itself is painful.
• The appearance of blood in the urine.
• Urine frothy.
• Swelling under the eyes and on the feet.
• Nausea, vomiting.
• Constipation or diarrhea.
• Metallic taste or bad breath.

Most of the symptoms associated with the deterioration of General health. In a normal state of kidney remove from the body all toxic substances and products of metabolism. Often, when violation of this function is ammonia poisoning, renal pain and vomit.

Differential diagnosis of

Swelling

Although many of us associate the swelling with symptoms of kidney disease, you should know that their cause may be a disruption of the heart.

To distinguish the different causes of swelling can, knowing their characteristics. If you have kidney disease they arise in the morning, because at night, the process of urine formation and excretion slows down. Primarily edema in kidney disease occur on the face, and then the process is becoming more common with the disease. The swelling is uniform, can how to quickly arise and quickly disappear. Patients often marked by weight gain due hidden edema. It is also a distinctive feature of the renal nature of the phenomenon.

Swelling caused by heart failure, appear on the ankles and calves symmetrically on both legs. They increase gradually in a few months. Consistency – dense, solid. Accompanied by shortness of breath, pain in the left upper quadrant, is a common condition worsens during physical activity.

Night pain

Another characteristic, common to heart failure and kidney disease – nocturia. This predominance of night diuresis above day. In heart failure the cause is the daily fluid retention in the body, and venous stasis.

Night, sore kidneys, and increases urine output in chronic glomerulonephritis and nephrosclerosis. Cause is an abnormal widening of the blood vessels of the kidneys.

Also at night the lumen of the ureter is narrowed, and the presence of stones is more pronounced pain at night or early morning.

Specific symptoms

There is a special technique of diagnosis, when a sore lower back and kidneys. This symptom is called a symptom of a beating. When the little taps on the back in the supposed location of the bodies arise, or worse painful. The tapping is carried out on both sides of the spine, with pain in the kidney it will be distributed posterior to anterior. However, this symptom may be positive in some other diseases of internal organs, it is important to check where gives pain.

Technique and location perform percussion in determining the symptom of Pasternatskogo

The most informative and reliable is the modification of the test, known as symptom pasternatskogo. After beating in the urine are determined blood cells. This is typical of nephrolithiasis (kidney stones).

After applying the shaking the beating intensified pain from the affected organ when pielonefrita.

Some diseases can mimic how sick kidneys. About the true causes of pain in the kidney area can be read in this article.

The complex nature of pain

Depending on the main causes differ and how treated.

Acute pain

This type of pain is inherent in renal colic. Acute pain in the kidneys occur sharply from the hypochondrium to the back. Distributed in the iliac region, groin. Men gives in the scrotum and penis, in women in the vulva. The pain can shift with the advancement of stone in the ureter. Usually the stones are retained in the transition of pelvis into ureter at the crossing with the iliac vessels or in preduzima ureter. The closer the stone is to the bladder, the sharper the pain appears in the penis or vagina, the more pain in the end of urination.

You can determine that renal pain, not back or intercostal neuralgia by the fact that for the first time after the occurrence of the pain persists when you change the position of the body, the patient is restless, trying to get away from these feelings.

Pain in intercostal neuralgia associated with the position of the body is reduced at rest, with a shallow breath.

“Acute abdomen” is a complex of symptoms in lesions of the abdominal organs, followed by irritation of the peritoneum, severe pain and tension of the abdominal wall

You also need to recognize renal colic and to distinguish it from symptoms of acute abdomen in appendicitis, cholecystitis, pancreatitis, perforated ulcer, adnexitis. The main indicator – cramping nature of the pain. Acute pain of renal colic are often accompanied by nausea and vomiting. What is important for the diagnosis: they do not bring relief.

Aching pain in kidneys

Aching pain in region of kidneys is caused by gradual, slow increase of organ, leading to increase in its size. This happens in chronic pyelonephritis, tuberculosis of kidneys, hydrodams, and tumors. In the capsule of the kidney and the walls of its internal structures (cups and pelvis) are receptors that respond to pressure. When stretching the signal with these baroreceptors is perceived by the brain as pain.

A gradual increase in stretching of the renal sinus causes aching in nature of pain

To the same phenomena and results in a temporary increase in load when required functional hypertrophy of the parenchyma and increase productivity. This may be due to pregnancy, alcohol intake, and some medications.

As the inflammation of internal organs may give similar feel the pain, then diagnosis must go based on the data from a patient survey the results of urine and blood samples, physical methods of research. Pyelonephritis are characterized by throbbing pain and intermittent fever.

Nagging pains are more characteristic of physiological or pathological displacement of the kidneys. So, in pregnancy, the authorities pushed away down the growing uterus, and in the pathology of the ligaments is the omission of the kidneys – nephroptosis.

What to pay attention

Beginning any intense pain in the back or side requires an immediate comprehensive assessment.

Special attention should be paid to the presence of the following indicators:

• the appearance of blood and protein in the urine;
• detection in the blood high serum creatinine, and urea;
• frequent urination, accompanied by pain;
• the increase in nocturnal urine;
• high blood pressure;
• the appearance of edema.

The presence of diabetes or congenital diseases that lead to renal dysfunction, should also become the reason for regular examinations of the kidneys on the subject of pathological changes.

Methods of diagnosis

Kidneys hurt or not is a subjective sensation, and sometimes chronic diseases develop without symptoms, so diagnosis is crucial diagnostics.

You must pass a General analysis of blood and urine test, hardware tests.

Ultrasound safe the most informative method of examination in Nephrology

So with the help of ultrasound or CT to check for stones, diffuse changes of the parenchyma, to determine the presence of tumors, cysts, foci of infection, the location of the bodies.

When sore kidneys, it is important not to forget that the source of the sensation may be outside – in the bladder, the ureters, the supply vessels. To detect violations of blood circulation using Doppler ultrasound and angiogram, and to establish the patency of the ureters – radiography and excretory urography.