Has any one heard of "Flank Pain"

[billybags]

My husband has arthritis in his knee and since his heart attack he is really suffering with pains in his knee and in his flank. He has excruciating pain, even morphine patches do not dull it. I have done a bit of research into his renal thing he has IGNA and his symptoms point to Flank Pain any one heard of this, got this.It is supposed to effect woman more than men. Should I mention this to the neph in two weeks time or will he think I am going over the top with the tinternet doctor bit.

[paul.karen]

Sure you should mention it to your Neph and or GP.
Especially is the patches are of no use for his pain.

[Willis]

IGNA? Do you mean IGAN...IgA Nephropathy?

If so, I have IGAN and I've had flank pain in various degrees since I was a teenager (I'm 58 now). It's a well-known symptom of IGAN. After many intrusive tests over the years I was always told basically (though the doctors never said it out right) that it was in my head. Another less common symptom is a runny nose. I always thought I had allergies and took so many antihistamines over the years that now I'm allergic to THEM. 

Finally about 6 years ago I started with a new doctor who was smart enough to put 2+2 together. After a PET scan of my sinuses showed NOTHING he went "hmmmmm" and that along with the flank pain complaints led to his discovery of my renal disease which I had always suspected but no other doctor ever believed.

So your husband's flank pain is probably real! I'll have to leave it to the doctor's to explain its cause or significance.

 

[billybags]

Willis thanks for that. I believe it has some thing to do with proteinuria, I will be doing more research on this. How are you coping with it because pain killers do not touch this pain, he has even been given opiates and they did nothing to stop the pain. Our GP says it is arthritis but I am not going with that.

[Willis]

Willis thanks for that. I believe it has some thing to do with proteinuria, I will be doing more research on this. How are you coping with it because pain killers do not touch this pain, he has even been given opiates and they did nothing to stop the pain. Our GP says it is arthritis but I am not going with that.

I have had some spinal and arthritis pain over the years and chiropractic treatment usually helped that. But the flank pain is subtly different. Most of the time it's just a sense of tightness that doesn't really hurt and I've always had it and so now don't even think about most of the time.

But occasionally for who-knows-what-reason it feels like someone is trying to steal my kidney using a dull knife. In the past I was checked for kidney stones because it hurt so bad but of course the tests were always negative. "It's all in your head...go to the chiropractor..." 

Lately it's been worse. But my creatinine has been going up about a point per month and today I found out it's over 9 for the first time. So you are probably right about a relationship with proteinuria.

 

[Zach]

Silly me, I thought "Flank Pain" was a comedian from the 1960s.

[tyefly]

      Yes   Zach....   now thats   FuNNY

[billybags]

Zach, that's Frank Pane you silly thing, made me laugh.

[Sluff]

Taken from Medline Plus  http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003113.htm

Flank pain refers to pain in one side of the body between the upper abdomen and the back.
Considerations

Flank pain often means kidney trouble. If flank pain is accompanied by fever, chills, blood in the urine, or frequent or urgent urination, then a kidney problem is the likely cause.

See also: Kidney stones
Causes

    Kidney problems
        Acute pyelonephritis (kidney infection)
        Kidney stone
        Kidney abscess
    Shingles (flank pain with one-sided rash)
    Spinal arthritis
    Disk disease
    Muscle spasm

[Willis]

Taken from Medline Plus  http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003113.htm

    Kidney problems
        Acute pyelonephritis (kidney infection)
        Kidney stone
        Kidney abscess

That must be the book all my doctors for 30 years were using...they should add IgA Nephropathy to the list. Maybe they wouldn't have prescribed NSAIDS for my "arthritis" pain.
 

 

[billybags]

Thanks Sluff, I checked out that site. The Gp says its pain spreading from his arthritic knee, and keeps giving him morphine patches which are not doing a thing only making him dopey, the neph, he is brilliant, he sent him for an endoscopy, that was clear, he also sent him for a CT scan on his abdomen and pelvis last Tuesday, so we have 3 weeks before we go back and see him. The nurse comes for bloods next Wednesday and she is also doing a K/v test on his fluid. I do not think it is arthritis I reckon it is kidney related, but who am I. The neph seems to be doing all he can but we are into the 9th week after his heart attack and this leg thing and he seems no better.

[Sluff]

How in the hell can his knee get up to the Flank area with arthiritis. Thats a new one for me. I am no Doctor but I highly doubt there is any correlation there.  It could be as simple as an allergic reaction to meds or maybe an infection. Please keep us posted.

[Riki]

what is IgA Nephropathy?  that one is a new one on me...

and a runny nose can be related to kidney issues??  I've had a constant runny nose for most of my life, and it's worse when I'm eating.  I figured it was hereditary, because my dad has the same problem.  He doesn't have kidney issues.

[billybags]

Riki this is one of the common reasons for kidney failure :

This is a form of glomerulonephritis that was first described by Berger and Hinglais in 1968.1,2,3

Berger's disease is often the name attached to the mildest form of this IgA nephropathy. It is caused by immune complexes of IgA that become lodged in the glomeruli followed by complement fixation. This is unusual because IgA tends to be associated with immunity on mucosal surfaces and normally IgA is unable to activate complement. The alternative complement fixation pathway is apparently used. Pathology shows a spectrum of glomerular lesions but mesangial proliferation with prominent IgA deposition is present in most biopsies. Galactose deficiency of IgA molecules has been identified as being the most likely pathological mechanism.4

Just found out my husband has got flank pain because he has a trapped nerve in his back. It has taken 9 weeks for this to flag up, GP insisted it was arthritis. Went to see an osteopath surgeon Monday and he said "yes the knee is bad and we can fix it" but we have to sort out the trapped nerve  in your back it is urgent. We are now waiting for an urgent appointment to see a neurologist. Round and round and round.

[ODAT]

Taken from Medline Plus  http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003113.htm

Flank pain refers to pain in one side of the body between the upper abdomen and the back.
Considerations

Flank pain often means kidney trouble. If flank pain is accompanied by fever, chills, blood in the urine, or frequent or urgent urination, then a kidney problem is the likely cause.

See also: Kidney stones
Causes

    Kidney problems
        Acute pyelonephritis (kidney infection)
        Kidney stone
        Kidney abscess
    Shingles (flank pain with one-sided rash)
    Spinal arthritis
    Disk disease
    Muscle spasm

this sounds exactly like what happened to my niece. I'm hoping it's not an ongoing problem. She had all those symptoms and it was a kidney infection. Once she started intravenous antibiotics her white blood cell count finally went down.

[Willis]

what is IgA Nephropathy?  that one is a new one on me...

and a runny nose can be related to kidney issues??  I've had a constant runny nose for most of my life, and it's worse when I'm eating.  I figured it was hereditary, because my dad has the same problem.  He doesn't have kidney issues.

http://www.igansupport.org/faqs.html

Episodes of gross hematuria and rises in proteinuria often seem triggered by colds or other respiratory infections, or even by lack of sleep. At other times there is no apparent trigger. Some patients have sore throats and headaches as if coming down with a cold, yet they have no fevers and tests for bacteria are negative, suggesting that a virus — or an autoimmune reaction — may be involved. Emotional stress may also aggravate proteinuria, at least temporarily. (Even hereditary disorders like hemophilia have their symptoms exacerbated by stress.)

It may look as if the patient is immune-deficient and falling prey to every bug that comes along, yet full-blown symptoms of respiratory illness (sneezing, runny nose, cough) rarely develop. IgAN seems to follow a seasonal pattern, worsening in winter and spring. Patients report an increased number of "colds" then, but it is unclear if these are actual viral/bacterial infections or hyperimmune reactions. Many also report that it takes them a month or more to get over colds that other family members shake off in days.

These symptoms I've put in bold above are rare even for IgAN but describe my experience. You can see that such symptoms could easily be attributed to seasonal allergies as they were in my case.

 

[billybags]

Willis, Glad to say it is not flank pain, although it is in that area, it has took 9 weeks, 2 visits by the GP because of the pain, went to see osteoporosis guy Monday and hubby has got,   wait for it    A TRAPPED NERVE IN HIS BACK and it needs urgent treatment. I can not believe he has seen so many different doctors and had so many x-rays and ct scans and no one picked it up.He has been in terrible pain all this time.He has to walk when he is able with 2 sticks.Screammmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm