10 Symptoms of Polycystic Kidney Disease

5. Kidney Stones

Due to the stasis of urine along with the possible existent infection, a crystalline material may start to form a hard kidney stone. Almost one-third of patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease will suffer from kidney stones. Especially susceptible are patients who suffer from pain and blood in their urine. In polycystic kidney disease, there is usually a decrease in the levels of citrate in the urine. As a result, the stones formed in polycystic kidney disease are different than those in the general population; they are usually uric acid stones. The usual method of determining whether a person has a kidney stone or not is through performing an ultrasound. However, this can be difficult to do in polycystic kidney disease as the large cysts make it difficult to establish a diagnosis.