Which kidney diseases can cause low back pain?

Kidney diseases that cause low back pain include chronic kidney disease, kidney stones, pyelonephritis, renal tuberculosis, renal tumors, renal ptosis and hydronephrosis. Among them, the first three are the most common, and the low back pain they cause has its own characteristics.

1. Chronic kidney disease: Chronic kidney disease includes various primary glomerulonephritis and various secondary kidney diseases. The former includes common chronic nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, IgA nephropathy, etc., and the latter includes kidney damage caused by systemic lupus erythematosus, diabetes, hypertension, etc. These diseases may manifest as low back pain, but more importantly, these patients often have edema, hypertension, proteinuria, hematuria, and may also be accompanied by varying degrees of renal impairment.

2. Acute and chronic pyelonephritis: It is common in women. In acute inflammation, inflammation of the renal pelvis leads to increased tension in the renal capsule, which manifests as soreness, dull pain, and distending pain in the lower back. It may also be accompanied by chills, high fever, frequent urination, urgency, and pain when urinating. In the case of chronic pyelonephritis, low back pain or discomfort in the lower back may occur, but the medical history often includes chronic recurrent frequent urination, urgency, and pain when urinating. Whether it is acute or chronic pyelonephritis, low back pain in this type of disease is more common on one side, and medical examinations can reveal varying degrees of tenderness and percussion pain in the kidney area. Laboratory tests show an increase in white blood cells in the urine, and urine bacteriological culture can reveal pathogenic bacteria.

3. Kidney stones: Kidney stones are a common urinary system disease that causes low back pain. Broadly speaking, kidney stones include kidney stones, ureteral stones, bladder stones, urethral stones, etc. Both kidney stones and ureteral stones can cause severe low back pain, which is "like a knife twisting", so people often say "kidney stones are life-threatening, but they hurt people to death". This pain is often caused by the stones being stuck in a certain position after moving, resulting in a strong contraction of the ureter. Patients often have nausea, sweating, frequent urination, urgency, and pain when urinating, and some patients may also experience fever. Kidney and ureteral stones often cause hydronephrosis due to stone obstruction without severe pain, which manifests as swelling and pain in the lower back or other discomfort. This severe low back pain similar to kidney stones can also be seen in patients with renal artery embolism, diabetes or pyelonephritis, where necrotic renal tissue falls into the ureter and forms ureteral obstruction.

Kidney disease is preventable and treatable. Understanding the characteristics of low back pain caused by kidney disease can help people detect, diagnose and treat kidney disease early. Once the above symptoms appear, you should seek medical attention for relevant examinations in time. Urine test is the most basic method for screening kidney disease. If there is no abnormality in urine test, kidney B-ultrasound and kidney function test, the possibility of kidney disease can be ruled out.