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Amyloidosis and the kidneys: the types, the signs, the tests, and the treatment
For anyone who has been told they have amyloidosis, or that it may be amyloidosis, anyone on dialysis with joint pain or carpal tunnel, and the family beside them. It passes on, by name, what the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK, part of the NIH) says: what amyloidosis is, the types that reach the kidneys, who gets them, nephrotic syndrome and the other signs, the tests, the treatment for each type, caring for the kidneys, prevention, and food. It builds the questions to ask and prints a wallet card. Nothing is saved.
Right now
- Severe trouble breathing, chest pain, or fainting? Call 911 (ours). NIDDK says amyloidosis can affect the heart as well as the kidneys.
- Swelling or shortness of breath that is new or getting worse? Call your health care team and tell them; do not wait for your next visit (ours). NIDDK lists both among the signs, and says to talk with your health care professional about all your symptoms.
- Thoughts of suicide, or all too much? Call or text 988, any hour, free (ours).
More help
- On this site: Nephrotic syndrome · Kidney disease · Kidney biopsy · Kidney failure: choosing a treatment · Kidney transplant · Kidneys, bladder and urine: find the right page.
- Alongside it: Hemodialysis · Peritoneal dialysis · Anemia in kidney disease · Heart failure · Carpal tunnel syndrome · High blood pressure · Caring for someone · Depression · My medicines.
- When it is hard to pay: When you need a doctor and can’t pay · Medical bills. Getting ready: Get ready for your appointment · Getting ready for imaging.
- In an emergency: Help right now (988, 911). All our free tools.
Kidneys, bladder or urine, and not sure this is the right page? The pages on this site for bladder infections, kidney stones, blood in the urine, bladder pain, bladder leaks, the prostate, kidney disease and bedwetting, on one list.
This page and its wording were written with AI (Claude) for Scarlet Beast (our AI policy). No doctor or nurse has reviewed it. The facts were read on October 20, 2026 on NIDDK’s (NIH) page Amyloidosis & Kidney Disease (last reviewed February 2022). The numbers (AL amyloidosis reaching the kidneys in about 2 out of 3 people who have it; AL affecting about 40 out of every 1 million Americans; AL most common over the age of 65; more than 30 proteins that can form amyloid) are NIDDK’s, and we add none. Ours: the 911 line; calling your team about new or worse swelling or shortness of breath; never starting or stopping a medicine on your own; 988; the questions to ask; the card; the links to our other pages; and the order of the steps. What we left out: NIDDK’s section on research studies, its references and its outside links; we name no single medicine and no doses (only the groups of medicines NIDDK lists), and no foods. Nothing you tick or type here is saved or sent.