What is Polycystic Kidney Disease

Polycystic Kidney Disease means that there are many cysts developing in the kidney. And cysts can be growing and increasing the time. Cysts are noncancerous round sacs containing water-like fluid. The kidney function is to filter the wastes and fluid from blood to urine. When the cysts grow in the kidney, your kidney will become larger, which leads that the cysts can replace the normal structure and damage the organs. And cysts have a very bad and profound influence on the kidney, which eventually can lead to kidney failure. Besides, cysts don’t only form in the kidney, but also can develop in the liver and other organs, which causes many other problems. Polycystic kidney disease will cause many complications, such as high blood pressure and kidney failure.
Polycystic kidney disease is mostly divided into two inherited kinds, which are called autosomal recessive PKD and autosomal dominant PKD. But there is Non-hereditary polycystic kidney disease, too. Now let’s see the detailed introduction as following:
Autosomal dominant PKD:
90 percent of patients with PKD are suffering from autosomal dominant PKD. Autosomal dominant PKD is the most common type, which is because a defective gene from one of parents is inherited by the child. This disease usually shows up in the adulthood between 30 and 40 of the age, so it is but some can develop in the childhood.
Autosomal recessive PKD:
The rate of autosomal recessive PKD is rare. The patient with autosomal recessive PKD must inherit two faulty genes from each of his parents. And this disease develops very early, usually after birth, even in the womb.
Non-hereditary polycystic kidney disease:
Non-hereditary polycystic kidney disease means that it is developing due to mutation of the genes, not affected by parents. The patients with Non-hereditary polycystic kidney disease don’t need to worry that their children inherit the disease.

In a word, polycystic kidney disease has many varieties according to its severity, and some complications can be preventable. Good life habits and timely medical treatments may contribute to reducing damage to your kidneys. From the above, we can get a general understanding of Polycystic Kidney Disease, which can be helpful for patients with PKD.