Post Date April, 15 2023
The clinical manifestations of pediatric kidney disease are mostly the same as those of adult kidney disease. However, due to the unique characteristics of children, the symptoms of pediatric kidney disease are different from those of adults.
In clinical symptom observation, it was found that the following symptoms of kidney disease in children are the same as those in adults
1. Local or systemic edema
Edema first appears in the eyelids and other softer parts of the body. When the condition is severe, edema can spread throughout the body. If the condition is mild, edema only appears on the eyelids and will automatically disappear in the afternoon. Children often experience edema and need to control salt in their diet, but excessive salt control is harmful for kidney disease in children.
2. Urinary abnormalities
Urinary abnormalities are mainly manifested as unexplained nocturia, frequent urination, high urine volume, heavy color, and the presence of a large amount of urinary protein in the urine.
If a child suddenly experiences these symptoms without any direct cause, parents should take the child to the hospital for examination as soon as possible to avoid delaying treatment.
The above are common kidney diseases in children and adults.
Due to the unique age of children, the symptoms of kidney disease in children also have other characteristics.
1. Anemia, stunted development
Renal dysfunction leads to hypoalbuminemia in children, resulting in malnutrition, pale complexion, lips, fatigue, and lack of energy, as well as indifferent reactions to the surrounding environment.
2. Infection
Respiratory infections are the most common, and intestinal and urinary tract infections are also common, especially skin infections that should be noted. Primary peritonitis often occurs in children with kidney disease.
3. Hypovolemia and shock
When kidney disease occurs, there is systemic edema, but the circulating blood volume is lower than normal, especially when using strong diuretics, vomiting, diarrhea, or ascites drainage, which can further reduce blood volume and lead to shock. Long term use of adrenal cortical hormones suppresses the adrenal cortex, which cannot meet the body's needs under stress, leading to hypovolemic shock and hyponatremia.
4. High coagulation state and embolism
During kidney disease, some coagulation factors in the blood increase, platelets increase and aggregation increases, and the use of hormones exacerbates the hypercoagulable state of the blood. In addition, the use of diuretics results in blood concentration and increased viscosity. These factors are the basis for the occurrence of thromboembolism complications. Vulnerable blood vessels include limb blood vessels, inferior vena cava, renal vein, mesenteric vein, pulmonary artery, hepatic artery, vein, and even coronary artery, resulting in corresponding clinical symptoms.
The above are the clinical manifestations of kidney disease symptoms in children, but sometimes these symptoms are obvious, and sometimes they are not. Therefore, whenever one or more of these symptoms appear, one should be vigilant and promptly go to the hospital for diagnosis and confirmation to avoid missing and delaying treatment.
Moreover, due to the similarity between some diseases and others, it is difficult to diagnose them solely based on external symptoms. Therefore, it is best to conduct laboratory tests to avoid misdiagnosis.
