How to Treat Horseshoe Kidney

A kidney (or renal) fusion condition is when the kidneys fuse together during child development. The most common type of kidney fusion is horseshoe kidney, which is when the kidneys fuse together instead of separating as two distinct entities. As they fuse, they form a “U” shape giving it the name “horseshoe”. A person can live with this condition for his or her whole life. However, sometimes this condition can cause other medical conditions, which will need to be treated symptomatically, both with medication and home remedies. If the conditions become worse, the kidneys can be separated surgically. Scroll down to Step 1 to learn more.

Method 1 - Keeping Your Horseshoe Kidney Healthy

1

→ Guard your kidneys from physical trauma. Horseshoe kidneys are not protected by your ribcage and muscles because they do not ascend like normal kidneys. Because of this, it is really important to protect your kidneys as much as possible. It is best to avoid contact sports and occupations where your horseshoe kidney could be put at risk.

→ Go to the hospital if you sustain an injury to your kidneys. Your kidney is more in danger of injury that other people’s kidneys. If you get injured and think your kidney could have sustained some damage, go to the hospital right away. Damage to your kidney could lead to internal hemorrhage, intense pain, blood in the urine, and your kidney not being able to function properly.

2

→ Stay hydrated all the time. Drinking lots of water every day will help to clean your kidneys out regularly. You should try to drink at least 8 to 10 glasses of water a day, but if you have the chance to drink more than that, more is even better! Carry a water bottle around with you so that you can stay hydrated even on the go.

→ You can drink other hydrating beverages like coconut water and electrolyte boosters like Gatorade on top of drinking water. If you get bored with plain water, squeeze some lemon in there to give it some flavor.

3

→ Eat natural unsaturated fats, rather than saturated fats. Unsaturated fats lower the amount of bad cholesterol in your body and can help to cushion your kidneys. Saturated fats, on the hand, contain cholesterol and can harm your body if you eat them a lot. Stick to unsaturated fats for the most part.

→ Examples of unsaturated fats: Vegetable oils like olive oil, raw nuts, fish, salmon, tuna, and flaxseeds.

→ Examples of saturated fats: Animal products like red meat, cheese, and lard. Coconut and palm oil are also forms of saturated fats, though they do not contain cholesterol like animal products do. Red meat also increases your chances of developing kidney stones.

4

→ Lower your phosphorus intake. Phosphorus is an essential nutrient but when you consume too much of it, it can lead to your body sending calcium into your blood. When your kidney is weak, it can’t remove phosphorus from your body as well as it normally can. Excess amounts of phosphorus can gather in your body, causing bone and cardiac problems. Foods with very high amounts of phosphorus include:

→ Carbonated drinks and processed foods.

→ Pumpkin seeds, Romano cheese, scallops, pork chops, and beef.

5

→ Eat more whole grain products. Whole grain products help your kidneys to lower cholesterol and have the added benefit of helping you sleep well at night. Try to replace less healthy carbs like white bread, rice, and pasta with products like:

→ Whole wheat bread and pasta, brown rice, barley and oats.

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→ Eat kidney “super foods”. Some foods are more kidney-friendly than others. In particular, there are three herbs—coriander, parsley, and turmeric—and two root vegetables—garlic and ginger—that are great for the health of your kidneys.

→ Coriander and parsley: Both of these herbs help to cleanse your kidneys. You can add them to your food, take extracts, or drink their juices.

→ Turmeric: Turmeric contains curcumin, antibacterial, antifungal and anti-inflammatory properties. You can drink turmeric tea or take supplements.

→ Garlic: Garlic contains allicin, that has antibacterial, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory properties. You can add more garlic to your diet, eat the cloves, or take garlic supplements.

→ Ginger: Ginger contains gingerols, which work in a similar fashion to allicin and curcumin. You can eat raw ginger, add it to means, drink ginger tea, or take supplements.

7

→ Avoid smoking or drinking alcohol. Both of these substances can do damage to your kidneys, and to the rest of your body. While an alcoholic drink every once in a while will not do too much damage, avoiding both alcohol and cigarettes is the healthiest route you can take, particularly if you are concerned about the health of your kidneys.

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→ Get exercise to stay in shape. Exercising helps your body in a variety of weights. By exercising, you can keep from gaining extra weight that can put more pressure on your kidneys. It can also keep your cholesterol, sugar, and blood levels at healthy amounts. Try to exercise for at least 30 minutes, five to seven days a week. You should perform a combination of aerobic and strength training exercises.

→ Aerobic exercises include walking, biking, swimming, and running around while playing your favorite sport.

→ Try light strength training, but do not jump into heavy lifting, as you could injure yourself. Try lifting lighter weights and then work your way towards the heavier weights.

→ Give yoga a try. Yoga is also a great way to strengthen your body while also becoming more flexible.

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→ Take epsom salt baths. Epsom salt baths can reduce the stress you feel that can cause your kidneys some distress. Taking a bath with epsom salt also helps your body to expel toxins that get built up in your body. When your body has a little extra help expelling toxins, everything functions better—including your kidneys.

Method 2 - Treating Conditions Caused by Horseshoe Kidney

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→ Take antibiotics to treat kidney infections. Horseshoe kidneys are prone to bacterial infection. You will have to have your urine examined to figure out what bacteria is in your kidney. You will then have to get a prescription for an antibiotic that will get rid of the infection. It is important that you finish your whole antibiotic treatment, even if you start feeling better within the first couple of days. If you stop too soon, the infection may come back.

→ Some of the common antibiotics used for kidney infection include Ciprofloxacin and a combination of Amoxycillin and Clavulanic, which is called Augmentin.

2

→ Get plenty of rest while recovering from a kidney infection. If you are taking antibiotics for a kidney infection, you should rest as much as possible. Take work or school off and rest so that your body can heal itself. Do not do any heavy lifting, and try to stay put in a bed or on the couch.

→ Getting rest will speed up your recovery process and help the antibiotic medication to do its job.

3

→ Drink lots of fluids to help pass smaller kidney stones. The more hydrated you are, the more urine your body will produce. If the kidney stone you are dealing with is small enough, filling your body with water and other fluids could flush the stone out with your urine. Drink upwards of 10 glasses of water a day to really hydrate yourself and see if you can flush the stone out.

→ If you get bored drinking water, add some fruit juice, like lemon, to the water to give it some flavor. You could also drink hydration sports drinks like Gatorade or Powerade. Coconut water is also a good option for hydration.

4

→ Get a prescription for a medication that can help break down larger kidney stones. There are some medications that can enter your system and break down your kidney stone. One of these medications is Allopurinol, which can break down uric acid stones.

→ If your kidney stones are too large for medication to have much of an effect, your doctor may also suggest Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy (ESWL) to break up the kidneys. During this procedure, high-energy sound waves are sent through the spot where your kidney stone is. The kidney stone will get broken up but the rest of your body will remain unharmed.

5

→ Visit your doctor often to get ultrasounds done for early detection of kidney tumors. If you have a horseshoe kidney, it's a good idea to set up regular appointments with your doctor to make sure that you do not have any tumors developing. Doctors use ultrasounds to check out your kidney and make sure that it is tumor-free.

→ You may want to consider setting appointments up for every six months or so, just to be on the safe side. Talk to your doctor about the amount of visits he or she thinks is necessary based on your medical history.

6

→ Talk to your nephrologist about kidney cancer treatment if you have cancer or think you are likely to develop it. Your doctor will take your age, health, and medical history into consideration when determining the best way to fight the cancer.

→ The two most common forms of treatment are chemotherapy and radiation. Your doctor may also choose to do a combination of both therapies.

Method 3 - Considering Surgery

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→ Consider surgery as your last option. Surgery should only be considered as a last resort if you are suffering from several conditions due to your horseshoe kidney. The risk of the surgery done to separate the two kidneys is actually very high, so it is only done in very severe cases. For the most part, surgery is done to fix conditions caused by horseshoe kidney, and is done less often to actually separate the kidneys.

→ The surgery to separate a horseshoe kidney involves three separate surgeries in which a surgeon will work to separate, repair damage, and reconstruct your kidneys.

2

→ Get kidney stones removed during the kidney separation procedure. If you suffer from frequent kidney stones and choose to have your kidneys surgically separated, the surgeon will remove your kidney stones at the same time.

→ Again, having surgery done to separate kidneys is risky, so you should consider getting the kidney stones removed via medication and safer surgical practices (see Method 2 for more information).

3

→ Have kidney tumors removed surgically. If a kidney tumor, particularly a cancerous tumor, is found it will have to be removed surgically to make sure that it does not cause your kidney further complications. Talk to your doctor about the different procedures available and what would work best for you based on your medical history.

→ During a kidney tumor removal, the tumor will be dissected and the surrounding tissue will be removed.

TIPS

→ There is no evidence to show that having a horseshoe kidney has an effect on pregnancy or delivering a baby.

→ Your main focus should be on treating the conditions that are caused by the horseshoe kidney, rather than the horseshoe kidney itself.

Warnings

→ If you think you have any of the conditions listed in this article, or are concerned you might develop them, visit your doctor right away.