Causes and Risk Factors of Polycystic Kidney Disease
This disease appears to occur all over the world among all socioeconomic and ethnic groups. Men and women are affected equally, and about 500,000 Americans have PKD.
Autosomal dominant PKD is the most common inherited disease in the United States. People get the disease from a parent who has PKD. If one parent has autosomal dominant PKD, each child has a 50/50 chance of inheriting the disease. In autosomal recessive PKD, parents may have no symptoms but still carry a recessive gene for the disease. If both parents have this recessive gene, one-fourth of the children can inherit the disease.
Symptoms of Polycystic Kidney Disease
PKD usually affects both kidneys. The symptoms include abdominal or flank pain, blood in the urine (caused by blood vessels breaking in the cysts), kidney stones, and recurring bladder or kidney infections. High blood pressure is very common, occurring in about 50 percent of all people who have the disease. However, not everyone who has one of more of these symptoms has PKD. A high proportion of PKD patients develop kidney failure, which may require dialysis treatments or a kidney transplant.
Diagnosis of Polycystic Kidney Disease
In addition to a medical history and physical exam, your physician may order blood tests and a urinalysis (urine test). Ultrasonography, which uses sound waves, is sensitive enough to detect most cases of PKD. Computed tomography (CT scan), especially when combined with dye infusion, is one of the most sensitive tests available.
