Still troubleshooting... have you been there?

[Baffledandconfused]

Hello,

I'm new to the forums. I'm a male, 32 years old, and I"ve had these symptoms for the last 4 years:

- Nocturia (waking up anywhere from 3 to 7 times every night to urinate)
- Polyuria
- Extreme difficulty concentrating
- Extreme fatigue
- Frothy/bubbly urine
- Inability to retain liquids for very long
- Headaches
- Leg/hip (or would they say flank?) pain...

My blood tests show no abnormalities, but my symptoms all seem to point to damaged kidneys. I'm tired of lab results and doctors not really seeming to give my symptoms much attention. I'd rather not wait until I'm on dialysis before I find a diagnosis. If I can find a diagnosis now, I may be able to avoid it altogether!

I'm a little unsure about what this whole "leg flank pain" is when I read about it. Can anybody describe it if they've felt it?

Also, did your symptoms resemble mine in any way? How so? Please, I'm dying for any encouragement or clarification here... knowing ANYTHING at this point would be better than the frustration of not knowing. Thank you.

[angieskidney]

Re: Still troubleshooting... have you been there?

Hello,

I'm new to the forums. I'm a male, 32 years old, and I"ve had these symptoms for the last 4 years:

- Nocturia (waking up anywhere from 3 to 7 times every night to urinate)
- Polyuria
- Extreme difficulty concentrating
- Extreme fatigue
- Frothy/bubbly urine
- Inability to retain liquids for very long
- Headaches
- Leg/hip (or would they say flank?) pain...

My blood tests show no abnormalities, but my symptoms all seem to point to damaged kidneys. I'm tired of lab results and doctors not really seeming to give my symptoms much attention. I'd rather not wait until I'm on dialysis before I find a diagnosis. If I can find a diagnosis now, I may be able to avoid it altogether!

I'm a little unsure about what this whole "leg flank pain" is when I read about it. Can anybody describe it if they've felt it?

Also, did your symptoms resemble mine in any way? How so? Please, I'm dying for any encouragement or clarification here... knowing ANYTHING at this point would be better than the frustration of not knowing. Thank you.

It depends on what blood tests they ran. Did you have to do a pee test? Did they test your Creatinine level, Phosphorus level and Potassium level and BUN?

I would be more curious as to what other things could produce those symtoms. Perhaps they are not directly related to the kidneys themselves but it does sound like it would be something to do with the urinary system ..

I would write down simple questions you have but don't push articles at the doc (they don't like that) but instead just keep it questions and answers. Then you can read what you wrote down at home, ponder on it and research on that and even go back the next time with more questions.

[Baffledandconfused]

Re: Still troubleshooting... have you been there?

Thanks Angie,

I actually did do a urine test. They said everything looked fine. My blood pressure was 128 over 77, and that was ok too for a person my age/size. But this made me wonder... Just because there was no protein in my urine this time, does that mean there never is? Maybe I just picked a good day to have a urinalysis. I don't know. I wonder if the symptoms of CKD can ever be intermittent... or, "spaced out" and inconsistent.

[angieskidney]

Re: Still troubleshooting... have you been there?

Thanks Angie,

I actually did do a urine test. They said everything looked fine. My blood pressure was 128 over 77, and that was ok too for a person my age/size. But this made me wonder... Just because there was no protein in my urine this time, does that mean there never is? Maybe I just picked a good day to have a urinalysis. I don't know. I wonder if the symptoms of CKD can ever be intermittent... or, "spaced out" and inconsistent.

I would hope they would do a follow up tests as sometimes a person might leak protein yet other times not. I am not a doctor so only a doctor can tell you for sure. I would still want follow up tests. Did they schedule you for any?

[Baffledandconfused]

Re: Still troubleshooting... have you been there?

Thanks again Angie.

I read that one of the symptoms of kidney disease is "Leg flank pain".

What does that mean? Could somebody please describe it? I think I have that pretty often.

[angieskidney]

Re: Still troubleshooting... have you been there?

Thanks again Angie.

I read that one of the symptoms of kidney disease is "Leg flank pain".

What does that mean? Could somebody please describe it? I think I have that pretty often.

Hmm.. I never heard of LEG Flank pain before .. just flank which I understood to be lower back (I never got that one myself .. actually I only had tiredness and very high blood pressure as a kid).

[janicejanice]

Re: Still troubleshooting... have you been there?

Dear Baffledandconfused,
You say you had a urine test, but do you know which specific tests were done on your sample? I agree with Angie...potassium, phosporous, creatinine are the MINIMUM needed to make a diagnosis of kidney failure. So call your doctor for more specific info, ok?

Classically, foamy urine is supposed to indicate the presence of protein. I have that a lot of the time, but my tests are always negative for protein.

As for the flank pain, that would (again,, classically) be on the outside of your thighs. Are you on any cholesterol med? Muscle pain can be a side effect. I experienced that in the past, and it WAS definitely flank pain.

Don't know if any of this helps. Hopefully, it will give you some ideas about what to ask your doctor. Let him/her know that your healthcare style is to know EVERYTHING.
Janice

[Baffledandconfused]

Re: Still troubleshooting... have you been there?

Thanks, I will definitely take that into account!!

Flank pain... I've always been so confused when I read that... is it a burning sensation? A stinging? Can somebody please describe? Also, the location. Google the word "Flank", and you'll see hundreds of pictures of deli meats. I'm feeling it on both sides (when it comes), and it almost feels like a pinched nerve or something... it goes down the back of both legs, all the way to right behind the knees. Not really sure if that's a symptom of CKD, but I get that sometimes. It's nothing too terrible either, but actually kind of dull, and it comes in waves... gets strong for a little while, goes away, gets strong, goes away.

Lately, I've also been very cold. We keep the thermostat around 65 degrees, but I'm feeling very cold... even if somebody touches me, they're like... "whoa, maybe you should move around or something".

I've done a little research that may point to Hydronephrosis... does anybody know what that is? If so, is it treatable? Is it possible to live a pretty normal life with early-stage kidney problems? How treatable are they? Thanks!