rapid weight gain without eating? - Kidney Disorders Message Board

sorrel2 · 05-12-2005, 02:12 PM

Hi,
I have no idea what's wrong with me and it seems no doctors can figure it out either. I am starting to wonder if it could be some form of kidney failure. I have been having vague problems for months (no appetite, nausea, feeling cold) but more recently they have gotten a lot worse. Because of nausea and poor appetite, I have barely been eating for a long time. I often go long periods of time (days, weeks) without eating anything caloric at all. But the strangest thing about all this is that I have not lost weight, in fact I have gained. I seem to have these sudden jumps in weight where I gain 5-10 lbs within 1-3 days. This kind of alarms me. Unfortunately it seems to be difficult to get doctors to believe you when dealing with weight-related issues. Saying something like, "I gained 10lbs in 2 days, and I wasn't eating ANYTHING AT ALL!" is just about a guarantee to get a doctor to laugh at you. HOWEVER, this is EXACTLY what is happening to me, and regardless of what doctors say I KNOW something is really, really wrong. Anyway, does this kind of thing happen with kidney failure because of fluid balance issues? My BUN and creatinine are normal, but I understand that kidney failure will make them rise while malnutrition/starvation will make them drop. So I am wondering if the malnutrition that is obviously a factor here is obscuring the "true" values. My BUN/creatinine ratio is a little high (28).

happyelf · 05-12-2005, 03:17 PM

sorrel2; Sorry you're feeling crummy--you know your body and drs. should listen whne you tell them something is not right. Maybe it's your thyroid. (have you considered that?) Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid)symptoms include unexplained weight gain and feeling cold are symptoms of thyroid. Have they run a TSH blood test ? It's worth checking into. Hang in there...
happyelf

sorrel2 · 05-12-2005, 05:03 PM

Yeah of course thyroid was my 1st thought too (months ago before things got really bad.) I am seeing an endocrinologist and having tons of tests done, but I think the endocrinologist is sort of baffled too. I do have some thyroid issues but that doesn't explain the whole thing. There may be other endocrine problems too but that ALSO doesn't explain everything. (feeling cold is probably thyroid related, but I do know someone who just had a kidney transplant, and he said one of his major symptoms was feeling cold! so that's why I mentioned it. )

I guess I am just trying to make some last-ditch efforts to get an idea of what might be going on. I am very sick right now, can't eat, can't work, barely functioning. I am a "health nut" and always thought I was in charge of my own health. I never thought I'd get to this kind of state. Anyway...forget I asked, obviously I am on the wrong track yet again. But thanks for answering.

Sinister79z28 · 05-13-2005, 11:38 PM

Sounds like either hypothyroidism or lymphoma.

Dee77 · 06-22-2005, 02:28 PM

i know creatine shows your kidney function, no nothing of the ratio. What was your thryoid test results? lymphoma can make you look bloated.
I have a similiar sort of(i can lose 5 lbs over night and gain it back the next day and it will be gone again. I can not gain weight.
sorry I am not much help to you. thyroid wont make you feel nauseated though.