Swollen Kidney, (Hydronephrosis) A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions

By Kenneth Kee

This book describes Swollen Kidney, Diagnosis and Treatment and Related Diseases
Swollen Kidney (Hydronephrosis) is a disorder in which one or both kidneys become stretched and swollen due to the accumulation of excess urine.
Hydronephrosis happens when there is either an obstruction of the outflow of urine, or reverse flow of urine already in the bladder (called reflux) that can cause the renal pelvis to become enlarged.
It can involve people of any age and is from time to time observed in unborn babies during routine pregnancy ultrasound scans (known as antenatal hydronephrosis).
Hydronephrosis does not normally cause any long-term disorders if it is diagnosed and treated promptly.
The disorder can raise the chances of getting urinary tract infections (UTIs).
In severe cases that are not treated, the kidney may become scarred, which could result in a loss of kidney function
The disorders with any of these urinary parts may induce fluid to reflux back into the kidney.
If only one of the kidneys is affected, the disorder is called unilateral hydronephrosis.
If both kidneys are affected, it is called bilateral hydronephrosis.
Hydronephrosis may lead to decreased kidney function.
If not managed quickly, permanent damage to the kidney or kidneys may happen, leading to kidney failure.
Risk Factors
1.Pregnant women (due to an enlarging womb that may compress the ureters);
2.Men over the age of 50 (due to enlargement of the prostate or prostate cancer);
3.Sexually active women (due to their risk for recurrent urinary tract infections);
4.Those who are predisposed to recurrent kidney stones.
Causes
Hydronephrosis happens as the result of an illness.
Hydronephrosis is not considered a disease.
One of the most frequent causes of hydronephrosis is acute unilateral obstructive uropathy.
This is a sudden development of a blockage in one of the ureters, which are the tubes that connect the kidneys to the bladder.
The most frequent cause for this obstruction is a kidney stone but blood clots and scarring can also induce acute unilateral obstructive uropathy.
A blocked ureter can induce urine to go back up into the kidney, which produces swelling.
This backflow of urine is identified as vesicoureteric reflux (VUR).
Other reasons of blockage may be:
1.A kink in the ureteropelvic junction, which is where the ureter meets the pelvis of the kidney
2.An enlarged prostate gland in men, which can be because of BPH or prostatitis
3.Pregnancy, which produces a compression due to a growing fetus
4.Tumors in or near the ureter
5.A narrowing of the ureter from an injury or birth defect
Symptoms
Hydronephrosis may or may not produce symptoms.
The main symptom is pain, either in the side and back (known as flank pain), abdomen or groin.
1.Pain in the lower abdomen
2.Nausea
3.Vomiting
4.Pain when urinating (dysuria)
5.Blood in the urine
Diagnosis
Most patients manifest with non-specific symptoms, such as dull abdominal pain, of less than 12 months' duration
The doctor may occasionally be able to feel the enlarged kidney by gently massaging the abdomen and flank area
An ultrasound is normally used to confirm a diagnosis
A doctor can also confirm a diagnosis with x-rays, computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Treatment
If the patient has hydronephrosis, the treatment will be dependent on the underlying cause and its severity.
Pregnant women and babies may not require any treatment.
Treatment for hydronephrosis primarily directs on getting rid of the blockage of the flow of urine
1.Insert a ureteral stent or a nephrostomy tube to drain the fluid
2.Remove the obstruction with surgery e.g. kidney stone, scar tissue or blood clot
3.Antibiotics

TABLE OF CONTENT
Introduction
Chapter 1 Hydronephrosis
Chapter 2 Causes

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kenneth Kee
• Release date: Dec 29, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370635870

Kenneth Kee

Medical doctor since 1972.Started Kee Clinic in 1974 at 15 Holland Dr #03-102, relocated to 36 Holland Dr #01-10 in 2009.Did my M.Sc (Health Management ) in 1991 and Ph.D (Healthcare Administration) in 1993.Dr Kenneth Kee is still working as a family doctor at the age of 74However he has reduced his consultation hours to 3 hours in the morning and 2 hours inthe afternoon.He first started writing free blogs on medical disorders seen in the clinic in 2007 on http://kennethkee.blogspot.com.His purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of his patients which is also his dissertation for his Ph.D (Healthcare Administration). He then wrote an autobiography account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.comThis autobiography account “A Family Doctor’s Tale” was combined with his early “A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders” into a new Wordpress Blog “A Family Doctor’s Tale” on http://ken-med.com.From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 1000 eBooks.He apologized for typos and spelling mistakes in his earlier books.He will endeavor to improve the writing in futures.Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.The later books go into more details of medical disorders.He has published 1000 eBooks on various subjects on health, 1 autobiography of his medical journey, another on the autobiography of a Cancer survivor, 2 children stories and one how to study for his nephew and grand-daughter.The purpose of these simple guides is to educate patient on health disorders and not meant as textbooks.He does not do any night duty since 2000 ever since Dr Tan had his second stroke.His clinic is now relocated to the Buona Vista Community Centre.The 2 units of his original clinic are being demolished to make way for a new Shopping Mall.He is now doing some blogging and internet surfing (bulletin boards since the 1980's) startingwith the Apple computer and going to PC.The entire PC is upgraded by himself from XT to the present Pentium duo core.The present Intel i7 CPU is out of reach at the moment because the CPU is still expensive.He is also into DIY changing his own toilet cistern and other electric appliance.His hunger for knowledge has not abated and he is a lifelong learner.The children have all grown up and there are 2 grandchildren who are even more technically advanced than the grandfather where mobile phones are concerned.This book is taken from some of the many articles in his blog (now with 740 posts) A Family Doctor’s Tale.Dr Kee is the author of:"A Family Doctor's Tale""Life Lessons Learned From The Study And Practice Of Medicine""Case Notes From A Family Doctor"

Book preview

Swollen Kidney,

(Hydronephrosis)

A

Simple

Guide

To

The Condition,

Diagnosis,

Treatment

And

Related Conditions

By

Dr Kenneth Kee

M.B.,B.S. (Singapore)

Ph.D (Healthcare Administration)

Copyright Kenneth Kee 2017 Smashwords Edition

Published by Kenneth Kee at Smashwords.com

Dedication

This book is dedicated

To my wife Dorothy

And my children

Carolyn, Grace

And Kelvin

This book describes Swollen Kidney (Hydronephrosis), Diagnosis and Treatment and Related Diseases which is seen in some of my patients in my Family Clinic.

(What The patient Need to Treat Swollen Kidney)

This eBook is licensed for the personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader.

If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy.

Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Introduction

I have been writing medical articles for my blog http://kennethkee.blogspot.com (A Simple Guide to Medical Disorder) for the benefit of my patients since 2007.

My purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of my patients.

Health Education was also my dissertation for my Ph.D (Healthcare Administration).

I then wrote an autobiolographical account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.com.

This autobiolographical account A Family Doctor’s Tale was combined with my early A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders into a new Wordpress Blog A Family Doctor’s Tale on http://kenkee481.wordpress.com.

From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 900 amazon kindle books and 300 into Smashwords.com eBooks.

Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.

For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.

The later books go into more details of medical disorders.

The first chapter is always from my earlier blogs which unfortunately tends to have typos and spelling mistakes.

Since 2013, I have tried to improve my spelling and writing.

As I tried to bring the patient the latest information about a disorder or illness by reading the latest journals both online and offline, I find that I am learning more and improving on my own medical knowledge in diagnosis and treatment for my patients.

Just by writing all these simple guides I find that I have learned a lot from your reviews (good or bad), criticism and advice.

I am sorry for the repetitions in these simple guides as the second chapters onwards have new information as compared to my first chapter taken from my blog.

I also find repetition definitely help me and maybe some readers to remember the facts in the books more easily.

I apologize if these repetitions are irritating to some readers.

Chapter 1

Swollen Kidney

What is Swollen Kidney (Hydronephrosis)?

Swollen Kidney (Hydronephrosis) is a disorder in which one or both kidneys become stretched and swollen due to the accumulation of excess urine.

The main function of the urinary tract is to eliminate wastes and fluid from the body.

The urinary tract has four parts: the kidneys, the ureters, the bladder and urethra.

Each kidney consists of two parts.

1. One part filters blood to remove excess water, salt, and waste products.

2. The other part collects urine.

The urine is formed when the kidneys filter blood and eliminate excess waste materials and fluid.

Urine accumulates into a part of the kidney called the renal pelvis.

From the renal pelvis, the urine moves down a narrow tube called the ureter into the bladder.

The bladder slowly loads up with urine, which empties from the body through another small tube called the urethra.

When the part of the kidney that collects urine becomes obstructed, the build-up causes swelling.

This disorder may happen only in one kidney.

This occurs when the urine can not flow out from the kidney to the bladder from an obstruction or blockage.

Hydronephrosis happens when there is either an obstruction of the outflow of urine, or reverse flow of urine already in the bladder (called reflux) that can cause the renal pelvis to become enlarged.

It can involve people of any age and is from time to time observed in unborn babies during routine pregnancy ultrasound scans (known as antenatal hydronephrosis).

Hydronephrosis does not normally cause any long-term disorders if it is diagnosed and treated promptly.

Babies with the disorder may not need any treatment at all.

The disorder can raise the chances of getting urinary tract infections (UTIs).

In severe cases that are not treated, the kidney may become scarred, which could result in a loss of kidney function (kidney failure).

The disorders with any of these urinary parts may induce fluid to reflux back into the kidney.

If only one of the kidneys is affected, the disorder is called unilateral hydronephrosis.

If both kidneys are affected, it is called bilateral hydronephrosis.

Hydronephrosis may lead to decreased kidney function.

If not managed quickly, permanent damage to the kidney or kidneys may happen, leading to kidney failure.

Hydronephrosis can occur in persons of all different ages.

If the disorder happens before birth, it is called fetal or antenatal hydronephrosis.

Hydronephrosis in babies

Hydronephrosis is progressively found in unborn babies during routine ultrasound scans.

This is known as antenatal hydronephrosis.

It is believed to occur in at least 1 in every 100 pregnancies.

As a