Every one has their own idea.

[BETH27584]

This all started with bacterial pneumonia. I was prescribed Doxycyclen, then Biaxin and then amoxicillin. Just before i started taking the amoxycillin, i got this horrible pain in my right side. I went to my primary care doctor and was told i had ulcers and was sent to a gastroenterologist who thought i had appendicitis and sent me to the ER who said i had a 3 inch cyst on my ovary and sent me to a OB/GYN who said that the cyst was 3 cm and nothing to worry about but the CT scan from the ER showed a "shriveled kidney" and i needed to see a Nephrologist. What causes a "shriveled kidney"? Yesterday, i stopped taking the antibiotic and the pain is not so bad today. Could the antibiotics be causing the problem? I'm tired of being sent somewhere else and still not knowing what's wrong with me! Can anyone help?

[kenn]

It depends what kind of ovarian cyst it is, but presumably they have decided it is a functional one and will go away. They are quite common and it is probably a red herring. I imagine they were only concerned because they thought it was 3 inches which is large.

It depends what they mean by a shriveled kidney. If it is scarred in some way, then this might be a remnant of a past disease or kidney stones. If they mean it is small, then it might have always been that way. You need to check with them and tell them you have been taking amoxicillin. This can cause kidney effects rarely, but I think you have to be careful about taking it anyway if you have impaired kidney function.

Antibiotics can cause abdominal discomfort (I think this is especially true for Biaxin). I imagine all of these antibiotics have upset your gut flora anyway and you could do worse than start taking some probiotics.

[BETH27584]

Thanks for your help. I have felt a little better every day since I stopped taking the antibiotics. I really believe that was my problem. They were killing me trying to make me better. I have an appointment with the Nephrologist Friday which really scares me since one of my Grandfathers died from Kidney disease. No one else in my family has had it. I hope that I'm not next.

My brother (35 years old) had a massive heart attack and passed away recently, should my sister and I have test done, should our children have test done. He had high blood pressure and none of the rest of us do - should we worry? I'm kind of disgusted by doctors right now, not to mention financially broken by them so i really don't want to go.

[Unregistered]

was your brother obese? i am 36 and normal weight but had a stroke recently.

[BETH27584]

no he was average about 5'9" 150 lbs. They think a defect in his heart caused it.

[acuann]

Thanks for your help. I have felt a little better every day since I stopped taking the antibiotics. I really believe that was my problem.

Absolutely, antibiotics can cause horrible side effects in some people. After three courses you MUST NOW TAKE A PROBIOTIC! Please get the best quality probiotic you can afford and take it daily for at least a month if not for several months. The antibiotics strip out all the bad with the good, leaving you prone to yeast overgrowth and leaky gut and other problems. A PROBIOTIC will reintroduce healthy bacteria to your gut, and get yourself back in balance. I recommend www.vitacost.com as they have lots to choose from at very good prices.

[kenn]

If no-one else in your family has died at an early age, then it sounds like your brother probably had a heart defect. You should always keep an eye on your blood pressure anyway and having regular health check-ups makes sense for everyone. But it is not worth going over the top on it. If you feel that an ECG would put your mind at rest, then maybe it is worth considering one but that is about it. You should be more vigilant if ever you suspect a heart or circulatory problem in the future however. If you do want a heart attack, then worrying about it is the best way to go forward (and that is a statistically proven fact!).

As for your kidney, it is probably nothing too much to get worked up over. If you had any kind of serious problem it should have showed in blood tests or other effects. You should mention to the nephrologist the pain that you have been having and that you have been taking various antibiotics (esp. amoxicillin). But just wait and see what he or she says.

It is worth remembering that it is often not the disease that kills the patient but the diagnosis. While I doubt you are ready to die because somebody thinks they saw a shriveled kidney, the fact is you didn't know about it until they mentioned it. Let us know what the nephrologist says however.

[BETH27584]

Thanks for your help. I'm half expecting the Nephrologist to send me somewhere else too. but since the pain is nearly gone now and i feel almost normal again I don't think i'll be going anywhere else. I am going to the Nephrologist (for my mom's sake) she thinks i'm going to die now! I had a lot of kidney problems until i gave up Coca-cola about 10 years ago and the kidney infections stopped. If anything, i think maybe it's just scarring from the 4+ years straight of kidney infection that i had. I couldn't get rid of it then. Now i don't have those problems anymore. I don't drink any soft drinks. As far as dying goes - I'm not finished yet... Still have things to do - Places to go and people to see!!!!

[BETH27584]

UPDATE: I went to the Nephrologist today. It seems that i was born without a left Kidney. There is a little nub where one should have grown but didn't - Of course they are doing test to make sure the (extra large)right kidney is working properly but don't think that i have anything to worry about As far as my now non-existent right side pain the Nephrologist thinks that all of the antibiotics were just too much for my system to handle... I stopped taking them and got better so i believe him... All of my urinalysis and blood test show no signs of kidney disease - SO IT'S JUST A REALLY GOOD THING YOU ONLY HAVE TO HAVE ONE KIDNEY TO LIVE... I just wonder why it took a little more than 37 years to find out that i have only one!!!

Thanks for being there when i was so frustrated with all of these doctors...
As far as the last post goes - i am sorry for your loss but everyone should know to get another opinion from another doctor... This is just advice.... They are telling what they think - and what they think may not always be right!!!
Beth

[kenn]

Beth, my father discovered he had only one kidney when he was about 50. I think it might be an eye opener if we all found out about our internal 'anomalies'!

Great news that you seem to be sorted out now.