How to Diagnose Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD)
2013-09-06 17:41Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) is a genetic disease. An accurate and early diagnosis can guarantee patients get correct treatment early. So let us have a understanding of how to diagnose PKD.
The common methods to diagnose PKD include several aspects:
1. Family history
PKD is divided into ADPKD and ARPKD according to its genetic characteristics. ADPKD is a kind of disease which can appear in several generations of one family, and both the son and the daughter may have this disease. ARPKD is a kind of disease which is mainly found in children, and these children often die soon after their birth.
2. Clinical manifestation
·The manifestation of urinary system: At about40 years old, most patients with PKD will have pain in their back or around their kidney, and may have the infection in their upper urinary tract. Kidney stone is another common symptom for PKD patients.
·The manifestation of cardiovascular system: Hypertension is often the first symptom of PKD. At the same time, patient may also has symptoms like left ventricular hypertrophy, intracranial aneurysm, mitral valve prolapse, and so on.
·The manifestation of other system: There are about 30%~40% of patients with PKD having liver cyst, about 10% of patients having pancreatic cyst, and about 5% of patients having splenic cyst.
3. Lab tests
·Routine urine test: There is usually no abnormality in the early stage of PKD. In the middle and late stage, patient may have microscopic hematuria or proteinuria. If patient has renal calculus or infection, there may be white cells and blood cells in patient’s urine.
·Supersonic inspection: This is the method which is often used in the examination of PKD. Through this method, we can see that the volume of kidney has obvious increase and there are many cysts in different sizes.
·CT and MIR: These methods are very accurate, and even the cysts of 0.3~0.5 can be detected. These methods can also help to distinguish PKD from other cystic diseases.
These are the common methods that can help to diagnose PKD, but they are not all. Many other methods may be used to diagnose PKD according to patients’ condition. If you have anything to ask, you can consult our online experts and we are glad to help.
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