Difference Between Back Pain and Kidney Pain

Pain is an unpleasant feeling. When the body tissue gets damaged or the nerves stimulated the pain will be felt by the brain. Pain receptors are located in various places. The impulses from the receptors will be transmitted to the brain via the nerves. This impulses will be recieved as pain in the cortex. The site of the pain will be determined by the brain.

Kidney pain (renal colicy pain) usually felt as loin pain. The pains from the internal organs are not localized properly. These pains may be felt as body pains. This is due to the sharing nature of the nerves. The nerves from the kidney and loin (back) will share same pathway.

Pure back pain may be due to muscle trauma or pain in the vertibral column. This type of pain is continous and increased with the movement. Usually this pain will responds to simple pain killers like paracetamol. Rest will reduce the severity of the pain.

Pain from the kidney (renal coliky) is usually intermittent coliky type of pain. The pain will increase and decrease in a wave form. movement usually not affect the renal pain. But tapping in the back (renal ankle tenderness) may increase the pain. Renal pain may be associated with other renal symptoms such as red urine, frothy urine or pain in urination. The severity of the renal coliky is very much and needs strong pain killers to relieve the pain.

In brief:

Back pain vs Kidney pain

– Both back pain and renal colicky will be felt in the back of the body.

– The back pain usually increases with movements, but not the renal pain.

– The severity of the back pain may be less than the renal pain.

– Renal pain may associate with other urinary symptoms.