kidney disease?

[doubleaaaron]

For a while I had swelling in my legs at certain times on and off. As of recently (the last month and a half) I have had foamy urine and swelling in my legs all the time. My urinating habits have been all messed up. I either go a lot or I don't go very much at all. And at night I go more than any other time. I also have had pains in my right side and feel fatigued and not well most of the time. I know that this could mean kidney disease. But could the urine be foamy with these symptoms and not have protein in it? Could another condition other than kidney disease cause these symptoms to happen at the same time? Thanks for any info, Aaron.

[Beth Witten MSW ACSW]

The symptoms that you're describing sound like classic symptoms of kidney problems and possible kidney infection. I'd suggest that you call your doctor right away, describe your symptoms and ask for a urinalysis and blood test to see what the results show.

[doubleaaaron]

The thing that worries me the most is that I donated my left kidney in march so I only have one left. I have went to the doctor and they said there doesn't seem to be anything wrong. I don't understand why I am sick and they don't know why either. I told them my right (I donated my left kidney) side bothers me often and I have foamy urine all the time it never goes away and my legs are swollen. I noticed it when I pushed on them with my finger and the imprint stayed there, but they said nothings wrong with me. I don't know what to do anymore. Is there anything else that can cause these symptoms or should I see another doctor? Maybe I am one of these people that needs to go to a hundred doctors before they know what's wrong with me. I honestly thought I had nephrotic syndrome but apparently I don't. I have not yet had a 24 hour urine test should I ask for one? Also my creatinine has been on the high side of normal. They said any more would be to high. Sometime back I had a gfr of 78 and later on it was 65 and as of a couple of weeks ago I had a gfr of 51. I was told normal for one kidney at my center was 85. I don't understand if its declining why they won't do anything. I am almost ready to give up. Thanks for any info.

[Beth Witten MSW ACSW]

It certainly sounds to me like your kidney function is declining based on the GFR numbers that you report. If your doctor doesn't recognize this as a problem, get a second opinion. If you're not going to a nephrologist (kidney specialist), that's the doctor that you should see. If you donated a kidney, you definitely need to be sure that the one kidney you have remains healthy. The transplant program where you donated your kidney should be able to help you find one if you don't have a nephrologist. If you have a kidney infection or protein in your urine, a nephrologist will know medications and there may be diet changes that you can do to treat these problems. However, you need to do this as soon as possible to protect your remaining kidney.

[doubleaaaron]

I have seen a nephrologist at the transplant clinic I go to. They say the same thing. I have asked about the gfr and they say that it is low but that's all they tell me. I had a nuclear scan of my kidney and the gfr came back at 51. Again they said nothing concerning about it. They don't seem to be concerned since other tests have been ok. All they do is the same blood tests they have always done and of course they get the same results. I have honestly called them and went to the clinic way more than I should have had to. Yet they act as if nothing is going on with me and try to pawn me off on another doctor. It is frustrating being that I am sick and feel bad all the time and can't get help. I have heard that the only way or at least a better way to get good results is to do a 24hr urine which I haven't had since before I donated. For some reason they won't do one on me now. I told my coordinator I was looking it upon the internet just to find info on what could be wrong and she told me to stop. I had problems before and they thought it was a hernia which they repaired. But the problems are still here. I don't get it. Maybe they are afraid I'll find the anwer on the internet and make them look stupid like they do on those mystery diagnosis shows. Thank you for your responses, Aaron

[Beth Witten MSW ACSW]

If your kidney function is declining after a transplant, I can't imagine why the transplant team wouldn't recognize it unless they're allowing themselves to deny that you have a problem because it's hard for them to accept that you gave a kidney and could have a kidney problem now. Go to a different nephrologist as soon as possible. You can look up doctors in the AMA's Doctor Finder by specialty in your area. Look under patients. Asking for a 24 hour creatinine clearance is not unreasonable, but the results may not be much different from what they got with a spot creatinine and calculated GFR.

http://webapps.ama-assn.org/doctorfinder/home.html

[doubleaaaron]

I will deffinatly try another nephrologist. I do believe that it is hard for them to accept that I have problems as I said before they denied some problems I was having by saying it was a hernia. I did have one, but it didn't take care of the things they said it would. Thank you for your help, Aaron