Is my child 

at risk for 

kidney 

disease?

National Kidney Disease

Education Program

A program of the National Institutes of Health
Some diseases and conditions put 

children at risk for kidney disease. 

A urine test is used to check for 

kidney disease before symptoms 

appear. Read more to learn about 

risk factors, the urine test, and 

treatment for kidney disease.
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How do I know if my child 

is at risk for kidney disease?

Your child may be at risk for kidney disease 

if he or she:

isoverweight

haspainintheback,side,orlowerbelly

complainsofburningorpainwhenurinating,has

changesintheurine,oroftenwetshisorherpants

hasunexplainedfever

hasswellinginthefeet,ankles,orlegs

wakesupwithswolleneyelids

becomesdehydratedoften

hasafamilymemberwithkidneydisease

Other conditions that may put your child at 

increased risk for kidney disease include:

SGA(smallforgestationalage)orbornpremature

agrowthdisorder

diabetes

highbloodpressure

rickets(softbonescausedbytoolittlevitaminD)

otherconditionsthatruninfamilies,suchas

polycystickidneydisease,AlportSyndrome,or

heartdisease
What do the kidneys do?

Your child has two kidneys. Their main job is 

to filter wastes and extra water from the blood. 

Wastes and water pass through the kidneys and 

leave the body as urine. The kidneys also make 

hormones that help the body make blood and 

keep the bones strong.

What is kidney disease?

Infections or other health problems can cause 

kidney disease. When a child has kidney disease, 

the kidneys may not work normally. This may 

lead to a harmful buildup of wastes in the body.

How can I find out if my child has 

kidney disease?

A urine test can be used to check for kidney disease 

if your child is at risk. Testing is important because 

early kidney disease often has no symptoms. Your 

child will urinate in a cup, and the sample will be 

tested for kidney disease.

THE KIDNEYS
What does the urine test look for?

The urine test checks for albumin. Albumin is a 

protein in your child’s blood that is too big to pass 

through healthy kidneys. If your child’s kidneys are 

damaged, small amounts of albumin can pass into 

the urine through the kidneys. In general, the more 

albumin there is in the urine, the more damaged the 

kidneys are.

What does high urine albumin mean?

A high urine albumin level may mean that your child 

has kidney disease. Your health care provider may do 

other tests for kidney disease, including a blood test, 

which checks how well the kidneys are filtering.

Can kidney disease be treated?

Kidney disease has many possible causes. The first 

step is to learn the cause of the kidney disease. 

Medicine and other treatments usually can’t undo 

the damage that has been done, but they may help 

prevent more harm. Your provider may ask you to 

take your child to a nephrologist—a doctor who 

treats patients with kidney disease.
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For more information:

About kidney disease in children

Call the National Kidney and Urologic 

Diseases Information Clearinghouse 

toll free at 1-800-891-5390 or 

go online at www.kidney.niddk.nih.gov/

kudiseases/topics/children.asp.

About kidney disease

Call the National Kidney Disease 

Education Program toll free at 

1-866-4 KIDNEY (1-866-454-3639) 

or go online at www.nkdep.nih.gov.

Participants in clinical trials can play a more active role in their own health care, gain 

access to new research treatments before they are widely available, and help others 

by contributing to medical research. For more information, visit www.clinicaltrials.gov.

The National Kidney Disease Education Program (NKDEP) works to improve the 

understanding, detection, and management of kidney disease. NKDEP is a program 

of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

www.nkdep.nih.gov

Revised September 2013 NIH Publication No. 13-7489

NIH...Turning Discovery Into Health®