Your kidneys, vital organs in maintaining overall health, diligently filter about 180 quarts of blood daily. This process not only produces urine but also ensures the right balance of water, red blood cells, calcium, and other essential minerals in your system. When problems arise, such as kidney disease, it’s often signaled by changes in urination patterns, including frequent urges that might leave you puzzled. Similarly, disorders like Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) can lead to questions like why does IBS cause frequent urination, while hypertension sufferers might wonder about the link between why does high blood pressure cause frequent urination. Should you experience sudden shifts in your urinary habits, it’s crucial to consult with a medical professional to discern the underlying causes and appropriate interventions.
Chronic kidney disease (CKD)
Your kidneys filter the blood, regulate water levels and flush away wastes through urine (pee). They also play an integral part in managing your blood pressure, red blood cell production and levels of calcium and other minerals in your body. Kidney disease is more common among older adults but can impact people of any age; diabetes, high blood pressure and many other health conditions are the most likely triggers – some cases may even be hereditary.
Kidney disease can lead to a buildup of toxins in your body, leaving you feeling tired, weak, and having difficulty focusing. Anemia occurs when there is insufficient hemoglobin available. Furthermore, kidney disease alters how the body utilizes certain minerals such as calcium and phosphorus resulting in weak bones.
Early signs of chronic kidney disease (CKD) often go undetected. To accurately diagnose CKD, your healthcare provider will run blood and urine tests that measure how well your kidneys are working (glomerular filtration rate; GFR); the second test checks urine albumin levels as an indicator that could indicate damage;
Your urine will also be tested for the presence of urea, creatinine and other waste products; the results will help determine your stage of chronic kidney disease from mild to severe.
Your healthcare provider will use these results to devise a treatment plan. The goal is to slow the progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and avoid kidney function loss; end-stage renal disease or kidney failure occurs when kidneys lose the ability to filter out waste and excess fluid from your body.
Your doctor may suggest diuretics to help flush excess water and salt out of your system, including loop diuretics (furosemide and ethacrynic acid), thiazide diuretics (hydrochlorothiazide) and potassium-sparing diuretics such as spironolactone, eplerenone and amiloride). You should also decrease protein consumption while increasing fruits and vegetables to help ensure a healthier lifestyle; they will work closely with you on this front too! Finally, they can discuss any health concerns as needed with them directly as well.
Kidney stones
Kidney stones are hard deposits formed when salts and minerals bind, creating hard deposits within your kidneys that range in size from small sugar crystals to the size of a ping-pong ball. While smaller stones may remain within your system without causing symptoms, larger ones can block urine flow which causes pain in your back, side, or belly as your body attempts to push out this mass; many compare the pain experienced as being similar or worse than childbirth.
Try to prevent kidney stones by drinking plenty of water, limiting salt, oxalate-rich foods (rhubarb, chocolate, tea, beans and some dark green vegetables) as well as increasing potassium-rich fruits and vegetables such as bananas, oranges and avocado. Too much animal protein also increases your risk for kidney stones which can be broken up via medication or percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL).
For optimal kidney stone care, it’s crucial that you drink enough water throughout the day in order to dilute urine, taking over-the-counter pain relief such as ibuprofen or naproxen sodium as necessary to help with pain management. If your stone is large, consult with your physician regarding surgery as an option.
Your doctor will collect a urine sample to diagnose what kind of kidney stone and where it lies, testing for calcium, phosphorus, and uric acid levels as well as looking for any infections or medications which could impact upon kidneys or urinary tract.
Your provider may advise waiting it out and let the stone pass naturally without treatment, or performing ureteroscopy, an endoscopic procedure where an endoscope (a thin tube) is placed into each kidney’s ureters – tubes leading from each kidney into your bladder – then used to either extract and/or break apart and extract kidney stones or pieces thereof, with either procedure sending any specimen(s) for laboratory analysis.
Polycystic kidney disease
Cysts of kidney tubules develop as a genetic condition that is marked by fluid-filled sacs (cysts). As these cysts grow larger over time, they may compromise normal kidney function resulting in symptoms like albuminuria, frequent urination, high blood pressure and elevated levels of wastes in the blood (uremia).
Polycystic kidney disease causes cysts to form on either the surface or within renal tubules, often in small pea-size cysts, up to grapefruit-sized ones, which may be painfully visible or cause swelling (edema) as well as symptoms like blood in urine (hematuria), kidney stones and high blood pressure. Sometimes a cyst may burst or rupture unexpectedly releasing blood into the bladder from both sources.
Most cysts in the kidney are asymptomatic, meaning that people do not experience symptoms or warning signs. That’s why it’s crucial for people with a family history of hereditary kidney diseases like polycystic kidney disease to visit their physician frequently and get their creatinine and urea levels tested – this form part of a basic metabolic panel most primary care providers order as part of routine physical exams.
Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease, or ADPKD, causes painful kidney cysts that lead to back pain, bloody urine, high blood pressure and kidney infections in some people. ADPKD also can affect other organs including liver, pancreas and an arachnoid membrane covering brain and spinal cord as well as prostate glands (seminal vesicles) which produce semen.
ADPKD usually does not result in kidney failure; however, it can lead to other health complications, including high blood pressure and heart valve abnormalities. People living with ADPKD can reduce the risk of complications by eating healthily and engaging in regular physical activity; medications like angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers may help control blood pressure as well.
Urinary tract infections
At some point in their day or night, everyone needs to urinate. Frequent urination could be an indicator of an underlying health problem and early recognition is essential for effective treatment and better management.
Kidneys produce urine, which travels through ureters, bladder and urethra to clear away waste products and excess water from blood. A urinary tract infection (UTI) can inflame these organs and lead to more frequent trips to the bathroom as bladder and urethra become infected with bacteria.
These infections are extremely common and typically harmless, yet can still be painful. Your doctor can perform a simple urine test to detect UTIs before prescribing antibiotics – even if your symptoms abate before your prescription runs out – which should continue being taken even if they no longer bother you. For people suffering with severe symptoms like fever, chills or back or side pain this could mean treatment in a hospital setting.
An Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) begins in the lower urinary tract, which consists of kidneys, ureters and bladder. Urine produced by kidneys travels down through ureters before collecting in your bladder for storage until you need to urinate again. Unfortunately, bacteria typically found in your bowel can enter this route and cause infection there.
Most UTIs involve the bladder, also known as cystitis. But you could also experience one in your urethra or kidneys known as pyelonephritis.
Kidney infections are more serious than bladder infections and may spread to your bloodstream and lead to sepsis, an acute blood infection which is life-threatening and most frequently seen among young adults, older adults and people whose immune systems cannot adequately fight infection (for instance those suffering from HIV or cancer chemotherapy treatments).
if you have a UTI, your healthcare provider will prescribe antibiotics and fluids to prevent it from spreading into the kidneys. They might also advise taking additional steps such as keeping hydrated with fluids to stay hydrated. In most cases, bladder or urethral infections will disappear once receiving their proper dosage of antibiotics; no follow-up urine testing is usually required unless advised by your provider.