Reflux nephropathy

Disease	Injury	Nutrition	Poison

Special Topic	Surgery	Symptoms	Test

Female urinary tract

Male urinary tract

Voiding cystourethrogram

Vesicoureteral reflux

Reflux nephropathy

Alternative Names:

Chronic atrophic pyelonephritis; Vesico-ureteric reflux; Nephropathy - reflux; Ureteral reflux

Symptoms:

repeated urinary tract infections in a female
a single urinary tract infection in a male
flank pain, back pain, or abdominal pain
urinary frequency/urgency increased
need to urinate at night
burning or stinging with urination
feeling of incomplete emptying of the bladder
blood in the urine
dark or foamy urine

Additional symptoms that may be associated with this disease:

Note: The disorder may not cause symptoms.

Signs and tests:

The blood pressure may be elevated, and there may be signs and symptoms of chronic renal failure.

Other tests include:

blood pressure
kidney ultrasound
serum, BUN
serum, creatinine
creatinine clearance
urinalysis or 24-hour urine studies that show elevated urine protein levels
urine culture that shows infection.
radionuclide cystogram may show vesicoureteric reflux or hydronephrosis (distention of the kidney from fluid accumulation in the renal pelvis)
IVP that shows hydronephrosis, a small kidney, or scarring of the kidney
Abdominal CT scan or ultrasound of the kidneys or abdomen that shows hydronephrosis, reflux, a small kidney, or scarring.
A voiding cystourethrogram (VCUG) definitively diagnoses vesicoureteric reflux

Review Date: 11/30/2001
Reviewed By: Andrew Koren, M.D., Department of Nephrology, NYU-Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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