What would cause unilateral kidney failure in a 25-year old male?

My brother is a 25-year old veteran with no history of kidney disease. He does not drink (stopped in November but was never an alcoholic), has no history of drug abuse (minor social use of marijuana), and no family history of kidney problems. He was hospitalized 3 weeks ago and was diagnosed with pancreatitis, enlarged spleen, and swollen kidneys. Now he has been told his right kidney is dead but 5 times the size of his left kidney.

What could have caused this (I hear talk of PKD but no one in my family has ever had problems with this before)? Also, what is the ideal treatment? How long can he go with a dead organ in his body?

Unilateral failure can be caused when one of the ureters was obstructed causing swelling and then damage to the kidney. This can sometimes be corrected with stents. If the kidney is permanently damaged, your brother can be fine with one kidney, assuming this was the problem. If the cause was PKD, then the other kidney could be in danger. As for the pancreatitis and splenomegaly, it does sound as though something else could be going on. The obstructed kidney can cause hypertension which can cause problems but I don't think this sounds like the problem. The damaged kidney is not usually removed because it can still contribute to his blood cell count. Hope I helped.

diabetes?

Tags

　　Knee Disorders 　　Knee Injuries 　　Klinefelter Syndrome 　　Kidney Transplantation 　　Kidney Stones 　　Kidney Infections 　　Kidney Failure 　　Kidney Diseases 　　Kidney Cancer 　　Kernicterus 　　Keloids 　　Kawasaki Disease 　　Juvenile Diabetes

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