What Are Symptoms of Polycystic Kidney Disease

In most causes, Renal Cyst is asymptomatic in the early stage. However, so the cysts enlarge, the patients will have a series of symptoms. As follows:

1. Loin pain

As the cysts grow, the patients’ kidney will also enlarge thus causing the tension of the renal capsule increasing. As a result, the renal pedicle or the neighboring organs of the kidney is pulled by the tension. In addition, the fluid in the cysts make kidney much higher than before. So kidney will drop down thus causing loin pain. Usually, patients have dull in only one or both kidneys. However, if patients have infection, their pain will be exacerbated.

2. Hematuria

Patients may have gross or microscopic hematuria periodically. When hematuria occurs, patients’ loin pain can exacerbate. If patients have violent exercise, trauma, infection, these can induce hematuia or make it worse. The reason for bleeding is that there are many arteries under cyst wall. When the oppression to the cyst walls increases or the patients come across infection, the blood vessels are pulled thus causing bleeding. Therefore, patients will have hematuria.

3. Lump in abdomen

As many patients with Renal Cyst have no obvious symptoms, about 60~80% patients go to see a doctor for the enlargement of kidney. Generally speaking, the bigger kidney is, the worse the renal function is.

4. Proteinuria

Generally speaking, patients do not have mass protein in their urine and the protein in urine is less than 2 grams per day. Most of patients do not have Nephritic Syndrome.

5. Hypertension

As Renal Cysts oppress kidney, it can cause renal anoxia, which can cause more renin to be secreted thus causing Hypertension. In fact, more than 50% of patients with Renal Cyst have had Hypertension when their renal function is still normal. As the renal function declines, the incidence of Hypertension will also increase.

6. Renal function declines

As Renal Cyst oppress kidney, the normal nephrons will decline. As are result, the patients’ renal function will decline.


The above article has described the main symptoms of Renal Cyst. If patients have those symptoms, they should receive treatment at once so as to prevent the development of the disease.