Causes And Treatment Of Kidney Pain
Kidneys are a pair of organs that are crucial to your overall health and well-being. They perform the significant task of eliminating all the harmful wastes from your body in the form of urine. Many factors can damage its optimal functioning. Any severe or mild kidney-related disease usually begins with a nagging pain experience in the left kidney. If you experience pain on your sides, or in the region of middle to upper back, it may be related to your kidneys. What causes kidney pain? Is there any kidney pain treatment available? Let’s understand all about it
Kidney Pain – Causes and Symptoms
Dehydration
Kidney stones
Urinary tract infection
Injury
Kidney cysts
1. Dehydration
Woman feeling dehydrated, Credit: Pixabay
It is the most common cause of experiencing pain in the left kidney. Water is essential for the kidneys to eliminate waste from your body. If you’re dehydrated, kidneys will not be able to flush out the waste from your body effectively. Aside from not drinking enough water, over-consuming alcohol is another cause of dehydration.
How does alcohol affect your kidneys? It completely dehydrates your body. As a result, your kidneys are not able to function correctly. Over time, excess alcohol consumption will severely slow down the functioning of the kidneys and cause you to experience pain.
You can know that you’re dehydrated when you experience the following symptoms:
Constipation
Dizziness
Unclear thoughts
Lack of concentration
2. Kidney Stones
Doctor showing kidney stones, Credit: Pixabay
Kidney stones are made as various salts, and minerals get concentrated in your kidneys. Smaller stones don’t cause many problems, but larger stones do. They get stuck in your kidneys, inhibiting urine from passing through. It further results in sharp pain.
Can alcohol affect your kidney stones? Yes, it does. As it dehydrates your body, it causes the formation of calcium oxalate stones in your kidneys. Thus, you need to limit your alcohol consumption.
Some symptoms of having kidney stones are:
Presence of blood in urine.
Difficulty in passing urine.
Nausea and vomiting.
Pain in the kidney area
3. Urinary Tract Infection
Man feeling intense pain, Credit: Pixabay
Sometimes, bacteria can enter the kidney through the urinary tract. If not diagnosed and treated at the right time, the bacteria can move to the left kidney and cause a severe urinary tract infection.
Symptoms of this infection include:
A sharp or dull pain in your left kidney.
Presence of blood in urine.
Fever and nausea.
Foul smelling urine.
4. Injury
Woman experiencing pain in chest, Credit: Pixabay
Many times, during a sport or any other activity, you might get injured specifically in the kidney area. Such accidents may cause a disturbance in the normal flow of blood to the kidneys. Depending on their severity, injuries can even lead to a kidney failure.
Some symptoms of a severe kidney injury are:
Tiredness
Difficulty in breathing.
Not being able to urinate as often as before.
Pain in the chest
5. Kidney Cysts
Diagram showing kidney cysts, Credit: Pixabay
Sometimes cysts which are filled with fluid develop in your kidneys. They can either form in one or both the kidneys. These cysts have a tendency to get bigger, and catch infection. It rsults in a sharp kidney pain.
Common symptoms of kidney cysts are:
Dull ache in the upper abdomen.
Pain in your sides.
Fever
Treatment of Kidney Pain
Doctor examining a patient, Credit: Pixabay
If felt for long periods of time, any kind of kidney pain demands a doctor’s attention. As there are various causes of kidney pain, a person can’t pinpoint an exact reason. The doctor makes a diagnosis using various tools.
Urine analysis and imaging tests like CT scans are most commonly used to diagnose kidney conditions. On its basis, a line of treatment is prescribed.
By paying attention to the various symptoms mentioned above, you can determine whether you’re suffering from any kidney disorder. It is recommended that you refer to your doctor as soon as possible. Ignoring the symptoms for long can result in other complications in the kidney.