Friday, February, 10, 2012

Polycystic kidney disease

Table of Contents

Alternative Names

Cysts - kidneys; Kidney - polycystic; Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease; ADPKD


Symptoms
  • Abdominal pain or tenderness
  • Blood in the urine
  • Excessive urination at night
  • Flank pain on one or both sides

Additional symptoms that may be associated with this disease include the following:

  • Drowsiness
  • High blood pressure
  • Joint pain
  • Nail abnormalities
  • Painful menstruation

Signs and tests

Examination may show high blood pressure, kidney or abdominal masses, abdominal tenderness over the liver, and enlarged liver.

There may be heart murmurs or other signs of aortic insufficiency or mitral insufficiency.

  • A urinalysis may show urine protein or blood in the urine.
  • A CBC may show decreased or increased RBCs and hematocrit.
  • Cerebral angiography may show associated aneurysms.

Those with a personal or family history of PKD should be evaluated to determine if cerebal aneurysms are a cause of headaches.

Polycystic kidney disease and associated cysts on the liver or other organs may be detected with the following tests:

  • Abdominal ultrasound
  • Abdominal CT scan
  • Abdominal MRI scan
  • IVP

In a family with several members with PKD, genetic tests can be done to determine whether a person at risk carries the PKD gene.


Review Date: 08/13/2009
Reviewed By: Parul Patel, MD, Private Practice specializing in Nephrology and Kidney and Pancreas Transplantation, Affiliated with California Pacific Medical Center, Department of Transplantation, San Francisco, CA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)