How Do U Know If You Have Kidney Failure – If you have only one kidney, that kidney is called a solitary kidney. This condition is different from having a solitary functioning kidney, in which you have two kidneys and only one is functioning.
Some people are born with only one kidney because the other kidney never developed—a condition known as renal agenesis or renal agenesis. A solitary kidney is sometimes diagnosed before birth with a routine prenatal ultrasound. It is sometimes diagnosed later in life after an X-ray, ultrasound or surgery for an unrelated clinical condition.
How Do U Know If You Have Kidney Failure
Some people are born with one normal kidney and another abnormal kidney that may eventually shrink and no longer be visible on an X-ray or ultrasound before or sometime after birth. This condition is known as renal dysplasia.
Chronic Kidney Disease
Some people need a kidney removed to treat kidney cancer or another disease or injury. This surgery is known as a nephrectomy. When a kidney is surgically removed, the ureter is also removed.
An increasing number of people are donating a kidney to be transplanted to a family member or friend whose kidneys have failed. Many people even donate a kidney to a stranger in need.
View full size image Some people are born with two kidneys, but one doesn’t work, called renal dysplasia. View full size image Some people are born with one kidney, called renal agenesis, or have a kidney and ureter removed because of disease or for donation, called a solitary kidney. How common is solitary kidney?
Are born each year with renal agenesis and between 1 in 1,000 and 1 in 4,300 babies are born with renal dysplasia. The estimates are probably low because some babies are never diagnosed with these conditions, particularly in countries where pregnant women do not routinely undergo prenatal ultrasounds.
Early Signs That You May Have A Kidney Disease
Men are more likely than women to be born with a solitary kidney and to receive a kidney donation. Women, however, are more likely than men to be living kidney donors.
People with renal agenesis or renal dysplasia may be at increased risk of developing kidney disease. For example, if your lone kidney functioned normally during childhood, you still have an increased risk of having reduced kidney function as an adult.
Generally, people born with nephrogenesis or renal dysplasia have no symptoms, live full healthy lives, and may never discover they have a solitary kidney. Some people discover they have a solitary kidney by accident after an X-ray, ultrasound, or surgery for an unrelated condition or injury. A minority of people develop progressive loss of kidney function and may develop symptoms associated with chronic kidney disease.
A small percentage of babies born with renal agenesis have other genetic defects, such as absent anus, absent or smaller than normal bladder, absent or smaller than normal uterus, smaller than normal lung, club feet, or a hole in the wall of the heart that separates the two lower chambers of the heart.
Stage 2 Chronic Kidney Disease (ckd)
During pregnancy, a healthcare professional can diagnose renal agenesis and kidney dysplasia when performing a prenatal ultrasound. The ultrasound uses a device, called a transducer, that bounces safe, painless sound waves off the fetal organs to create an image of their structure. Ultrasounds during pregnancy are part of the routine prenatal check-up.
If a fetus is diagnosed with renal agenesis or renal dysplasia, healthcare professionals may recommend additional ultrasounds before and after birth to learn how the solitary kidney functions over time and to check for other health problems.
In an adult, healthcare professionals may diagnose a solitary kidney during an X-ray, ultrasound, or surgery for another condition or injury.
Blood and urine tests will help your healthcare professional monitor your kidney function. Monitor and control your blood pressure
How To Pass A Kidney Stone & 5 Tips To Prevent Them
High blood pressure can damage the blood vessels in your solitary kidney. If the blood vessels in your kidneys are damaged, they may no longer work properly. When this happens, the kidney is unable to remove all the waste and extra fluid from your body. The extra fluid in your blood vessels can raise your blood pressure even more, creating a dangerous cycle and causing more damage that leads to kidney failure.
If your healthcare professional diagnoses high blood pressure, he or she may prescribe one or more blood pressure-lowering medications. Medicines that lower blood pressure can also significantly slow the progression of kidney disease.
Two types of blood pressure-lowering drugs, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), can be effective in slowing the progression of kidney disease while also lowering your blood pressure. A healthcare professional may also prescribe a diuretic.
Monitoring and controlling your blood pressure is especially important if you have a solitary kidney. Can I prevent injury to my lone kidney?
End Stage Renal Disease
You should tell your health care professional if you have a solitary kidney to prevent injury from medications or medical procedures. Certain sports may be more likely to injure the kidneys. This risk is of particular concern to children, as they are more likely to play sports. Talk to your health care professional about your specific sport and ways to reduce your risk of injury. Loss of the remaining functioning kidney will result in the need for dialysis or a kidney transplant.
If you have a solitary kidney, you don’t need to go on a special diet. However, you can keep your kidneys healthy by staying well hydrated, not taking in too much salt, and not gaining too much weight. If you have reduced kidney function, you may need to make changes to your diet to slow the progression of your kidney disease. Work with your healthcare professional or a registered dietitian to develop a meal plan that includes foods you enjoy eating while maintaining your kidney health.
For more information on recommended dietary changes, see the health topics Nutrition for early CKD in adults, Diet and nutrition for adults with advanced CKD, Nutrition for children with CKD, and CKD management.
[2] Health Resources and Services Administration, Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, National Data. Health Resources and Services Administration, US Department of Health and Human Services. Accessed November 19, 2020. https://optn.transplant.hrsa.gov/data/view-data-reports/national-data/#
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[4] Doğan ÇS, Torun BM. Renal outcome of children with unilateral renal agenesis. Turkish Journal of Pediatrics. 2013, 55(6):612–615.
[5] Argueso LR, Ritchey ML, Boyle ET Jr, Milliner DS, Bergstralh EJ, Kramer SA. Prognosis of patients with unilateral renal agenesis. Pediatric Nephrology (Berlin, Germany). 1992, 6(5):412-416. doi:10.1007/BF00873996
This content is provided as a service of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (), part of the National Institutes of Health. translates and disseminates research findings to increase knowledge and understanding about health and disease among patients, health professionals and the public. The content produced is carefully reviewed by scientists and other experts. Kidney stones develop when minerals filtered by the kidneys build up. The minerals build up inside your kidneys where urine is formed.
Over time, these minerals can form stones that are as small as a grain of sand or as large as a golf ball.
When Back Pain Means Kidney Problems
However, once they pass into the ureters (the tubes that carry urine from the kidneys to the bladder), you may notice many symptoms.
Pain is the number one indicator of kidney stones. This discomfort is caused when the kidney stone moves around the kidney or through the ureters.
Because your abdominal pain is a symptom associated with many conditions, it is always a good idea to check with your doctor if you are experiencing this type of pain so that he can give you a better diagnosis.
You’ll especially want to see your doctor if the pain prevents you from sitting, causes vomiting, or makes you feel feverish.
Kidney Infection: Signs And Symptoms
If kidney stones are blocking the ureters, you may start to see changes in your urination habits. These may go unnoticed at first, but they can quickly escalate into something you can’t ignore.
So if you suddenly experience any of these problems, you should schedule a visit with your doctor.
Urinary tract infections require antibiotics to treat, so just assuming you have kidney stones without seeking treatment can put yourself at risk.
In some cases, nausea can be a side effect of pain. However, it can also be a sign of infection. Fever and chills are also signs of infection.
Chronic Kidney Disease (ckd)
If you have an infection, you may need surgery to drain the kidney immediately so the infection doesn’t spread.
While most stones pass on their own, larger kidney stones can damage the urinary system and cause severe pain.
Depending on the location and size of your stone, your doctor may be able to recommend treatments to help you pass the stones on your own or schedule a procedure to help remove problematic stones that are unlikely to pass.
Kristin Baldea, MD, is a urologist at Loyola Medicine. Her clinical interests include kidney stones, kidney cancer, minimally invasive urological surgery and prostate cancer.
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Dr. Baldea earned her medical degree at Northwestern University. She completed her urology residency and fellowship in endourology and laparoscopy at Loyola University Medical Center.
Make an appointment today to see Dr. Baldea or another Loyola specialist by scheduling an in-person or virtual appointment yourself using myLoyola.
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