Kidney Pain Vs Back Pain: Signs Causes Treatment
- Back pain is common after an injury or muscle strain, during pregnancy, or if you have poor posture.
- Pain that feels deep in your back and happens in waves may actually come from your kidneys.
- Kidney pain is often a symptom of serious health concerns, so its best to call a doctor asap.
If you feel pain somewhere around your spine, your first thought might be that youve strained a muscle or injured your back. But your back may have nothing to do with it the pain could be coming from one of your kidneys.
Because your kidneys are very close to your back, its possible to mistake kidney pain for back pain but these two types of pain have different causes and treatments.
Kidney pain is typically caused by inflammation or diseases that affect your kidneys. Back pain, on the other hand, is typically caused by damage to the tissues in your back. Learning to tell them apart can make it easier to get the right treatment and relieve your pain.
Read on to learn the differences between kidney pain and back pain, possible causes of each, and what to do next.
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When Is It Back Pain Vs Kidney Pain
The kidneys are an amazing filtration system and play a crucial role in our overall health. Similarly, keeping ourselves healthy also ensures that our kidneys work properly. When the kidneys do not work as they should, they can cause pain and discomfort. However, diagnosing kidney pain is not something that can be done simply by assessing the location of the pain. There are other organs and structures that can trigger pain receptors in that area.
Before we get a little deeper into kidney pain, we must discuss exactly where the kidneys are located. Many people are surprised to know how high up they are. If you drop your arms to your side, your kidneys are somewhere at the level of your elbows, or slightly higher. This may help you understand that many cases of back pain simply do not originate in the kidneys.
What Color Is Urine When Your Kidneys Are Failing
When kidneys are failing, the increased concentration and accumulation of substances in urine lead to a darker color which may be brown, red or purple. The color change is due to abnormal protein or sugar, high levels of red and white blood cells, and high numbers of tube-shaped particles called cellular casts.
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Kidney Stones And Pain
Kidney stone pain can be excruciating. Individuals who have never had a stone may be suffering from a great deal of discomfort without knowing why. In reality, kidney stones are generally silent until they begin to pass. A stone that grows to 3 millimeters or larger can block the ureter as it moves from the kidney to the bladder. This movement can cause unbearable pain, usually in the lower back, right / left flank, or groin. Kidney stone pain can be intermittent or ongoing.
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Can Kidney Stones Feel Like Sciatica
A dull or sharp shooting pain down your arms and legs can be caused by back pain or neck pain, similar to sciatica. When you have a kidney infection, your back always feels dull and painful. Kidney stones are typically painful when they travel down to the urethra, causing a sharp pain in your abdomen.
Kidney stones are most commonly associated with severe abdominal or lower back pain. A persons appendix is a piece of tissue located in the lower right side of the abdomen that is inflamed. Urinary tract infections can cause other symptoms in addition to kidney stones. If you have any of these symptoms, you should always consult a physician.
If you have back pain that does not appear to be related to another medical condition, you should see a doctor as soon as possible. This pain can be caused by a muscle pull, a spinal issue, or, more likely, an injury. However, if the pain is caused by a kidney stone, it is more likely that it is caused by a problem with the stone itself. Kidney stones can be painful, as they are common and can affect a large number of people. If you are experiencing this type of pain, you should consult a doctor as soon as possible to determine the cause and to develop a treatment plan.
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Can Back Pain Be Mistaken For Kidney Stones
Kidney pain can be felt in the groin, back, or stomach areas. The symptoms are mistaken for back pain. Kidney pain can be caused by a variety of factors, including kidney stones, an infection, an injury, or kidney cancer.
The area where your kidneys function is the source of your kidney pain. This is commonly referred to as a dull ache or pain, which can be felt on your sides, back, or stomach. A kidney problem is unlikely to cause pain in these areas in and of itself. There are numerous causes for kidney pain, which can be serious or mild. If your back pain is persistent, it may also be felt in your side, ribs, or groin. You could have this condition, known as hydronephrosis, if your kidneys are blocked. Polycystic kidney disease causes the development of many cysts in the kidneys.
Blood clot formation can occur in a vein in the kidney. If you have a serious injury, your kidneys may feel mild to severe. Contact sports and excessive activity can result in kidney damage. Kidney pain is more severe than back pain, which is also felt in your body. It is often felt on one or both sides of your rib cage, as opposed to back discomfort.
What Does Kidney Pain Feel Like
Kidney pain can feel aching, stabbing, excruciating, or cramping, and it typically comes and goes in waves.
Since your kidneys are below your rib cage about elbow level, when your hands rest at your sides youll most likely feel kidney pain in that area.
Note: With back pain, you may feel as if you can reach and touch the painful spot. But kidney pain typically feels deeper and hard to reach.
Kidney pain usually involves other symptoms, too, says Dr. Rena D. Malik, Director of Female Pelvic Medicine & Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. These symptoms may include:
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Blockage Of Blood To The Kidney
A blockage of blood to the kidney is called a renal infarction or a renal vein thrombosis. This happens when the blood supply to and from the kidney is suddenly slowed or stopped. There are several causes, including a blood clot.
Blood flow blockages to the kidney typically happens on one side. Symptoms include:
- severe side or flank pain
- lower back pain or ache
- stomach tenderness
- blood in the urine
The Difference Between Kidney Pain And Lower Back Pain
The human body is very complex and sometimes the symptoms of two very different conditions can overlap and refer, creating confusion of where the pain is actually coming from. This is the case with your kidneys, located towards your back and underneath your lower rib cage. Therefore, its hard to tell if pain you are experiencing in that area is coming from your lower back or your kidney. Both present very similarly but have completely different causes. Knowing the symptoms location, type and severity of the pain, triggers, and characteristics of these conditions can help you differentiate the
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How To Identify The Type Of Pain You Are Having
The best way to determine whether you are experiencing back pain or kidney pain is to pay attention to the location of the pain. Back pain is typically felt in the lower back, while kidney pain is usually felt in the upper back, just below the ribs. Additionally, kidney pain is often accompanied by other symptoms like fever, nausea, and vomiting. If you are unsure about which type of pain you are experiencing, it is always best to consult with a doctor or medical professional.
What Is The Best Treatment For Kidney Pain Or Back Pain
When either your kidneys or your back hurt, you could either experience mild discomfort or a crippling pain. Since the actual problem might not be clear yet, consulting with a physician is imperative to determine the cause before they can administer treatment.
Issues with the kidney could either be a minor problem or a big one. If youre battling a kidney infection, your doctor would most likely prescribe antibiotics for you. A tiny kidney stone will require no treatment at all and pass naturally. In some cases, you many need a short hospital visit so they can get the stones out of your system smoothly. Drinking plenty of water can help with this problem. A larger kidney stone, on the other hand, would require surgery.
As for the back, various causes means many different cures are available. For non-serious back problems, you only need some rest, muscle relaxants, and a heating pad to relieve the pain. If the pain lasts for over two weeks, it may indicate a more severe problem that could require intensive care, physical rehabilitation, or minor surgery.
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Treatment Of Pain In The Right Kidney
The therapeutic strategy is directly related to the main cause of the pain symptom. The treatment of pain in the right kidney can be carried out both conservatively and operatively.
Conservative treatment of pain in the right kidney is the prescription of medicines that relieve the inflammatory process, and therefore pain syndrome. These may be antispasmodics, steroids, antibiotics, anticoagulants, diuretics. In the presence of pathological kidney damage, dialysis is possible. In addition, an important component of the therapeutic complex is a special diet, which involves restricting the intake of certain products. Most often, all salty, spicy dishes and smoked meats are excluded from the diet. Currently, the pharmaceutical industry produces a lot of highly effective drugs that help in the treatment of many kidney diseases. Therefore, surgery is carried out only in cases where the patients condition does not allow the use of conservative methods
Surgical treatment, including urgent, is carried out with such diseases:
- Trauma to the kidney .
- Urolithiasis in the stage of exacerbation and blockage of the urinary duct.
- Purulent pyelonephritis in the acute stage.
- Purulent extensive abscess of the right kidney.
- Renal artery thrombosis .
- Cyst of the kidney, purulent, large.
In exceptional cases, when it comes to saving the patients life, a kidney transplant is indicated.
Fever And Chills Along With Your Back Pain
This could also mean that you have a urinary tract infection.
If you have any of these symptoms, along with your back pain, you should call your doctor right away.
If your pain is unbearable, is associated with fevers or chills, or you have nausea and vomiting that is preventing you from keeping down fluids or medications, you should seek immediate medical attention, Nguyen says.
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Kidney Pain: When To See A Docto
If you suspect kidney pain, you should consult with your doctor. It is possible to have kidney pain due to a number of factors, and your doctor will be able to determine which is the case based on your symptoms and medical history. If you are experiencing pain that is unrelated to a kidney stone, you should consult with your doctor to determine whether other symptoms are also present.
Seek Kidney Pain Treatment Asap
Determining whether your lower back pain is due to back damage or a problem with your kidneys is an essential step towards getting the proper treatment. At the office of Dr. Gura, we offer a multitude of treatment solutions to relieve your pain and get you on track to better health as quickly as possible. Assess your needs by contacting us online or by giving us a call at 550-6240.
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How To Tell If You Have A Kidney Stone In Your Back
10 Signs Your Back Pain Could Be a Kidney Stone 1 Pain on one side of your lower back or on the sides underneath your ribs. 2 Pain that comes and goes in waves and changes in intensity. 3 Pain that doesnt go away when you move. 4 Severe pain. 5 Blood in your urine. 6
Pain from the kidneys is felt in the sides, or in the middle to upper back . The pain may also progress to other areas, such as the abdomen or groin.
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How To Get Relief
Rest and changing environmental triggers like your desk chair may be the easiest places to start when addressing back pain, but there are additional ways to relieve pain in the long term.Chiropractic care has proven effective at reducing not only back pain, but neck pain and headaches, including spinal headaches. At Denver Upper Cervical Chiropractic, we use gentle manipulations to adjust spinal misalignment, a common cause of back pain.
Additional treatments for back pain include:
- Physical therapy: Stretching and strengthening exercises to improve your posture and core strength can help alleviate back pain.
- Lifestyle changes: This includes changes to diet, exercise, and posture. Stress and sleep problems are also common triggers for chronic back pain.
- Pain medications: Many patients turn to over-the-counter painkillers to mask back pain symptoms, but this should not be a plan for long-term relief.
- Injections: Your treatment plan or medical advice may include nerve blockers or injectable steroids for targeted back pain relief.
- Acupuncture: Acupuncture has proven somewhat effective in some low back pain patients. More research is needed to demonstrate long-term efficacy.
- Massage therapy: Tension release in the back muscles through massage therapy can be a helpful way to relieve both physical and mental stress.
- Surgery: In rare cases, your healthcare provider may recommend back surgery to address severe pain. Spinal fusions and disc replacements are 2 common surgical options.
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Organs On The Right Side Of The Body
The right side of the body includes several organs as below:
1. Lungs
The lung is a significant portion of the human organ, located at the right and left sides. With the duty of transferring oxygen in and pushing the carbon dioxide out, this is one of the essential organs of the human body. While some portion of it is located on the right side of the body, the rest is left. Lung infections can cause sharp stabbing pains that may radiate to your back.
2. Right Kidney
Like the lungs, kidneys are located both on the left and the right side of the human body. The primary function of this organ is to push out all the toxins of the human body through urine.
3. Part of Liver and gallbladder
Under the ribcage on the right side of your body, a large meaty organ called the liver has the primary function of filtering all the blood from the digestive tract. Before this blood moves to the rest of the body, it is purified in the liver. The gallbladder lies under the liver that can also cause sharp pain below your ribcage.
4. Pancreas
The pancreas is located on the right side of the abdomen of a human body. The function of the pancreas is to convert all the food eaten by the human into the fuel that would charge the human body. Thus, it aids in the digestion of the food and provides the required level of sugar to the body.
5. Large intestine
7. Right fallopian tube and ovary
Other Important Organs in the Right Side:
The most common growths in the kidneys include:
Causes Of Kidney Pain
Kidney pain has many possible causes. These organs are connected to others like your bladder and ureters, where you store and get rid of urine.
Kidney stones. Intense, sudden, stabbing pain may be a kidney stone. These are mineral deposits that can grow large enough to block a ureter, a tube that connects your kidney and bladder. If that happens, you’ll feel sharp pain or cramps in your back or side. It can also spread out to your groin. As you try to pee out the stone, you might feel waves of pain.
Kidney infection. Also called pyelonephritis, this infection could cause discomfort in one or both kidneys. You may feel pain in your back, in your side or both sides under your ribs, or in your groin. You’ll also have a fever. Urinary tract infections also cause discomfort in this organ.
Kidney swelling. This condition, called hydronephrosis, can happen if your kidneys are blocked. Your urine can’t drain the way it should and builds up in your kidneys. This can happen in one or both kidneys and sometimes it causes pain.
Kidney cysts. You may not feel a simple kidney cyst until it grows larger. Once it gets big, you might feel a dull pain in your side or back, or feel pain in the upper part of your belly.
Polycystic kidney disease. This genetic disease causes many cysts to grow in your kidneys. They may cause you to feel a pain in your back or side.
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Best Treatment Methods For Back Pain And Kidney Pain
Understanding the difference between back and kidney pain is essential for effective treatment.
The most common type of treatment for back pain is physical therapy. Physical therapists use a variety of techniques to help relieve back pain and improve mobility. These may include stretching, strengthening exercises, massage, ice or heat therapy, electrical stimulation, and ultrasound. Other treatments, such as acupuncture and chiropractic care, can also be used in combination with physical therapy to treat back pain.
Kidney pain, on the other hand, is typically treated with medications to reduce inflammation and relieve symptoms. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are usually prescribed for kidney pain. Other medications, such as antibiotics or antispasmodics, may also treat any underlying infection or condition.
Contact Illinois Pain and Spine Institute for back pain relief in Chicago. We understand the severity of pain and can help identify the underlying causes of your discomfort.