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avatar Anonymous

i need information on copeing with finding out my 11 year old son has only one kidney.

im so scared i just found out my 11 year old son was born with 1 kidney. i need so much info i cant stop crying. please help

Question applies to ages: 11

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avatarElizabeth.Johns
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Top 5 in: Choosing College, Discipline, Families and Relationships, Family Activities, Growth and Development, Health and Wellness, Learning Disabilities and Special Needs, Learning Styles, Parents and Schools, Safety, School Policy and Education Issues, Study Skills and Academics, Summer Learning and Camps, Teens and Jobs, Transitions and Readiness, Motivating StudentsTop 5 in 16 Topics		 I think the fact that he's made it to age 11 and you've just found out now about this shows that your son is doing very well with one kidney. I did a quick web search and found out that particularly in boys, this is fairly common, with anywhere from 1 in 500 to 1 in 1000 people having only one kidney and many never even know it!

One web site stated: About one in thousand persons are born with only one kidney, live normal lives, and do not know they only have one! A MAG-3 scan will confirm that the abnormal kidney is gone. A reflux study is helpful in that up to 20% of children with cystic kidneys may have reflux.

Regardless, the overwhelming number of kids born with these cystic kidneys live entirely normal lives.

Another website also has some good info: www.house.gov/mcdermott/kidneycaucus/onekidney.htm

Since your son is reaching the age where sports may be more important to him, it seems the big caution is avoiding heavy contact sports like football, wrestling, boxing, hockey, etc., and to wear extra protective padding over the kidney area, since it will be important to keep his one kidney safe. Also, he should be monitored to make sure that his one kidney stays healthy.

I have a friend in her mid-50s who has only one kidney and she's strong and healthy and active. She does have to be careful about things like urinary tract infections, which could damage her one remaining kidney, but other than that, she lives a normal life.

The best way to handle your fears is to get as much information as possible. Work with your son's pediatrician and nephrologist (kidney specialist) on learning how to keep him healthy and to teach him how to handle this information, too. I know you're upset to find out this news, but from what I can discover online, it's not something to be terrified about. (After all, thousands of people donate kidneys to other people and function just fine with their one remaining kidney--that's the cool thing about kidneys--one can do the work of two.) Knowledge is the key to reducing your fear.

References:
mom of four (one child born with enlarged kidney--hydronephrosis--diagnosed before birth--at age 6, she's fine and healthy)
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