Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Mar;37(2):425-433.
doi: 10.3904/kjim.2020.576. Epub 2021 Dec 7.

The presence of simple renal cysts is associated with an increased risk of albuminuria in young adults

Hyo Jin Boo  1 , Jung Eun Lee  1 , Son Mi Chung  2 , Hye Ryoun Jang  1 , Wooseong Huh  1 , Dae Joong Kim  1 , Yoon-Goo Kim  1
Affiliations

The presence of simple renal cysts is associated with an increased risk of albuminuria in young adults

Hyo Jin Boo et al. Korean J Intern Med. 2022 Mar.

Abstract

Background/aims: The prevalence of simple renal cysts increases with age; however, they are occasionally found in adults aged < 40 years. This cross-sectional study evaluated the clinical significance of simple cysts in young adults, focusing on their associations with hematuria and albuminuria.

Methods: Adults aged < 40 years who underwent comprehensive medical examination between January 2005 and December 2013 were included. Simple renal cysts were identified by ultrasonography.

Results: Renal cysts were found in 276 of the 5,832 subjects (4.7%). Subjects with medullary sponge kidney (n = 1) or polycystic kidney disease (n = 5) were excluded. A single cyst and multiple cysts were found in 234 (4.0%) and 42 (0.7%) subjects, respectively. Age, high systolic blood pressure, and history of hypertension were independent risk factors for the presence of simple cysts. Simple cysts were not associated with an increased prevalence of hematuria. However, subjects with cysts showed a higher prevalence of albuminuria than those without (11.3% vs. 4.5%, p < 0.001). Multivariate analysis revealed that the existence of simple renal cysts was associated with a 2.30-fold increased prevalence of albuminuria (95% confidence interval, 1.512 to 3.519; p < 0.001) independent of other risk factors.

Conclusion: In young adults, the presence of simple renal cysts was independently associated with an increased prevalence of albuminuria. The causal relationship needs to be elucidated in further studies.

Keywords: Albuminuria; Cysts; Hypertension; Risk factors; Young adult.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Prevalence of albuminuria according to cyst location. There is no difference in the prevalence of albuminuria according to the cyst location (cortex, medulla, parapelvic region, and multiple; p = 0.813).
None
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

  • Simple renal cysts: no longer simple?
    Suh SH, Bae EH. Suh SH, et al. Korean J Intern Med. 2022 Mar;37(2):283-284. doi: 10.3904/kjim.2022.043. Epub 2022 Feb 28. Korean J Intern Med. 2022. PMID: 35272442 Free PMC article. No abstract available.

References

    1. Weber TM. Sonography of benign renal cystic disease. Radiol Clin North Am. 2006;44:777–786. - PubMed
    1. Terada N, Arai Y, Kinukawa N, Terai A. The 10-year natural history of simple renal cysts. Urology. 2008;71:7–11. - PubMed
    1. Chang CC, Kuo JY, Chan WL, Chen KK, Chang LS. Prevalence and clinical characteristics of simple renal cyst. J Chin Med Assoc. 2007;70:486–491. - PubMed
    1. Terada N, Ichioka K, Matsuta Y, Okubo K, Yoshimura K, Arai Y. The natural history of simple renal cysts. J Urol. 2002;167:21–23. - PubMed
    1. Grantham JJ. Acquired cystic kidney disease. Kidney Int. 1991;40:143–152. - PubMed